LOC18  PniUPPB  AT  THE  HOTEL  DK  YILI.E. 


/IDafeers  of  IMstorg 


Louis    Philippe 


BY 


JOHN.  S.  C.  ABBOTT 


WITH    ENGRAVINGS 


NEW   YORK  AND   LONDON 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS    PULLISHERS 

1904 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in   the  year  1871,  oy 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS, 
In    the   Office   of    the    Librarian    of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


Copyright,  1899,  by  SUSAN  ABBOTT  MKAD. 


PREFACE. 


IT  would  be  difficult  to  find,  in  all  the  range  of  the 
past,  a  man  whose  career  has  been  so  full  of  wonder- 
ful and  exciting  vicissitude  as  that  of  Louis  Philippe. 
His  life  covers  the  most  eventful  penod  in  French  his- 
tory. The  storms  of  1789  consigned  his  father  to  the 
guillotine,  his  mother  and  brothers  to  imprisonment, 
and  himself  and  sister  to  poverty  and  exile.  There  are 
few  romances  more  replete  with  pensive  interest  than 
the  wanderings  of  Louis  Philippe  to  escape  the  blood- 
hounds of  the  Revolution  far  away  amidst  the  ices  of 
Northern  Europe,  to  the  huts  of  the  Laplanders,  and 
again  through  the  almost  unbroken  wilds  of  North 
America,  taking  refuge  in  the  wigwams  of  the  Indians, 
and  floating  with  his  two  brothers  in  a  boat  a  distance 
of  nearly  two  thousand  miles  through  the  solemn  sol- 
itudes of  the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi  from  Pittsburg 
to  the  Gulf. 

Again  we  see  the  duke,  on  the  recovery  of  a  large 
portion  of  his  estates,  enjoying  the  elegant  retreat  at 
Twickenham,  feted  by  the  nobility  of  England,  and  ca- 
ressed by  the  aristocracy  of  Europe. 

Again  the  kaleidoscope  of  changeful  life  is  turned. 
The  Empire  falls.  The  Bourbons  are  restored.  Louis 
Philippe  returns  to  the  palaces  of  his  fathers.  In  rank, 


van  PREFACE. 

he  takes  his  stand  next  to  the  throne.  In  wealth,  he 
is  the  richest  subject  in  Europe.  At  one  moment  he 
is  caressed  by  Royalty,  hoping  to  win  his  support,  and 
again  he  is  persecuted  by  Royalty,  fearing  his  influence. 

There  is  another  change.  The  throne  of  the  Bour- 
bons is  overthrown.  Louis  Philippe  finds  himself,  ai 
by  magic,  King  of  the  French.  He  exchanges  his 
ducal  coronet  for  a  royal  crown.  He  enters  the  regal 
mansions  of  the  Tuileries,  Versailles,  Saint  Cloud,  and 
Fontainebleau  the  acknowledged  sovereign  of  thirty 
millions  of  people.  All  the  proud  dynasties  of  Europe 
recognize  him  as  belonging  to  the  family  of  kings. 
Eighteen  years  pass  away,  crowded  with  the  splendor, 
cares,  toils,  and  perils  which  seem  ever  to  environ  roy- 
alty. During  this  period  the  adventures  of  the  Duch- 
ess de  Berri  to  regain  the  throne  for  her  son,  the  Count 
de  Chambord,  presents  an  episode  of  extraordinary  in- 
terest. 

There  is  another  change.  The  tocsin  of  insurrection 
tolls  its  dismal  knell  in  the  towers  of  Paris.  Through 
scenes  surpassing  fable,  the  king  and  his  family  escape 
to  the  hospitable  shores  of  England.  Here,  in  obscuri- 
ty and  exile,  he  reaches  the  end  of  life's  journey,  and 
passes  away  to  the  unknown  of  the  spirit-land.  Such 
is  the  wonderful  story  which  we  have  endeavored  to 
compress  within  the  limits  of  these  brief  pages.  Every 
event  here  narrated  is  sustained  by  documentary  evi- 
dence beyond  the  possibility  of  a  doubt. 

JOHN  S.  C.  ABBOTT. 
fair  Haven,  Conn. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  FA«B 

I.    ORIGIN    OF   THE    HOUSE    OF    ORLEANS 13 

II.    THE    EXILE,, 4£ 

III.    WANDERINGS    IN  THE    OLD  WORLD   AND  THE  NEW       76 

IV.    THE    TOMB   AND    THE    BRIDAL 109 

T.    THE    RESTORATION 13& 

VI.    THE    DEATH    OF    LOUIS    XVIII.  AND  THE  REIGN   OF 

CHARLES    X 168 

VII.    CHARLES    X.   DETHRONED 204 

VIII.    THE    STRUGGLES    OF   DIPLOMACY 241 

ix.  LOUIS  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE 279 

X.    THE   ADVENTURES    OF    THE    DUCHESS   DE    BERRI.  .    306 

XI.    THE    FINAL    STRUGGLE 349 

XII.    THE   THRONE    DEMOLISHED 379 


ENGRAVINGS. 


MM 
LOOTS   PHILIPPE   AT  THE   HOTEL   DE   VILLE Frontispiece. 

EXECUTION   OF   LOUIS  XVI 27 

STORMING    THE    BASTILE 40 

FLIGHT   AND    IMPRISONMENT    OF    LAFAYETTE 50 

SAINT  GOTHARD 71 

NORTH   CAPE 80' 

LOUIS   XVII.   IN    PRISON 113 

LOUIS   XVIII.   LEAVING    PARIS 147 

NAPOLEON    ENTERING   THE    TUILERIES 151 

MARSHAL  NET 162 

ASSASSINATION    OF   THE    DUKE    DE    BERRI 171 

PALACE    OF   ST.  CLOUD 222 

CHARLES    X.  AT  VALOGNES 234 

THE   PALAIS   ROYAL 275 

THE    BARRICADES 812 

ST.  HELENA 353 

LOUIS   PHILIPPE    LEAVING   FRANCE 391 


LOUIS   PHILIPPE. 


CHAPTER  I. 
ORIGIN  OF  THE  HOUSE   OF  ORLEANS. 

Louis  and  Philippe. 

THE  origin  of  the  House  of  Orleans  is  in- 
volved in  some  obscurity.  The  city  of 
Orleans,  from  which  the  duke  takes  his  title, 
was  the  Aurelium  of  imperial  Eome.  The  first 
Duke  of  Orleans  with  whom  history  makes  us 
familiar  was  Philip,  the  only  brother  of  Louis 
XIV.  Louis  XIII.,  the  son  and  heir  of  Henry 
IV.,  married  Anne  of  Austria.  Two  (children 
were  born  to  them,  Louis  and  Philippe.  The 
first  became  the  world-renowned  monarch,  Lou- 
is XIV.  His  brother,  known  in  history  as  Mon- 
sieur, enjoyed  the  title  and  the  princely  reve- 
nues of  the  dukedom  of  Orleans. 

Monsieur  married,  as  his  first  wife,  the  beau- 
tiful Henrietta  Stuart,  daughter  of  the  unfortu- 
nate Charles  I.  of  England.  Her  mother  was 
Henrietta  of  France,  the  daughter  of  Henry  IV., 


14  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1669. 


The  regent. 


and  sister  of  Louis  XIII.  She  died  in  the 
bloom  of  youth  and  beauty,  of  poison,  after  the 
most  cruel  sufferings,  on  the  27th  of  June, 
1669.*  Philippe  took  as  his  second  wife  Eliza- 
beth Charlotte,  daughter  of  the  Elector  Charles 
of  Bavaria.  By  this  marriage  he  left  a  son, 
Philippe,  who  not  only  inherited  his  father's 
almost  boundless  wealth  and  princely  titles, 
but  who  attained  wide-spread  notoriety,  not  to 
say  renown,  as  the  regent  of  France,  after  the 
death  of  Louis  XIV.,  and  during  the  minority 
of  Louis  XV.  The  regent  was  a  man  of  in- 
domitable force  of  will.  During  his  long  re- 
gency he  swayed  the  sceptre  of  a  tyrant;  and 
the  ear  of  Europe  was  poisoned  with  the  story 
of  his  debaucheries. 

He  married  a  legitimated  daughter  of  Louis 
XIV.,  Marie  Frangoise  de  Blois,  a  haughty,  ca- 
pricious beauty.  His  scandalous  immoralities 
alienated  his  duchess  from  him,  and  no  hap- 
piness was  to  be  found  amidst  the  splendors  of 
their  home.  Dying  suddenly,  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
one,  his  son  Louis  succeeded  him  in  the  vast 
opulence,  the  titles,  and  the  power  of  the  duke- 
dom of  Orleans.  The  following  list  of  his  ti- 
tles may  give  some  idea  of  the  grandeur  to 

*  See  Abbott's  History  of  Louis  XIV  ,  p.  223. 


1670.]    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      15 


Louis  de  Valois. 


which  these  ancient  nobles  were  born.  Louis 
de  Yalois,  De  Chartres,  De  Nemours,  and  De 
Montpensier,  First  Prince  of  the  blood,  First 
Peer  of  France,  Knight  of  the  Golden  Fleece, 
Colonel-general  of  the  French  and  Foreign  In- 
fantry, Governor  of  Dauphiny,  and  Grand  Mas- 
ter of  the  Orders  of  Notre  Dame,  of  Mount  Car- 
mel,  and  of  St.  Lazarus  of  Jerusalem. 

Born,  as  this  young  man  was,  in  the  palace 
of  splendor,  and  surrounded  by  every  allure- 
ment to  voluptuous  indulgence,  two  domestic 
calamities  opened  his  eyes  to  the  vanity  of  all 
earthly  grandeur,  and  led  him  to  enter  those 
paths  of  piety  where  his  soul  found  true  repose. 
The  death  of  his  father,  cut  down  suddenly  in 
the  midst  of  his  godless  revelry,  and  the  decease 
of  his  beloved  wife,  Auguste  Marie  Jeanne,  a 
princess  of  Baden,  in  her  twenty-second  year, 
so  impressed  him  with  the  uncertainty  of  all 
terrestrial  good,  and  left  his  home  and  his  heart 
so  desolate,  that  he  retired  to  the  Abbey  of  St. 
Genevieve,  and  devoted  the  remainder  of  his 
days  to  study,  to  prayer,  and  to  active  works 
of  Christian  usefulness. 

He  became  a  proficient  in  the  fine  arts,  an  ac- 
complished scholar,  and  a  patron  of  all  those 
literary  men  whose  works  tended  to  benefit  soci- 


16  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1724. 


Louis  le  Gros. 


ety.  Ee  founded  hospitals  and  literary  institu- 
tions; established  a  college  at  Versailles;  en- 
dowed a  professorship  at  the  Sorbonne  for  ex- 
pounding the  Hebrew  text  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
translated,  from  the  original  Greek  and  Hebrew, 
the  Epistles  of  Paul  and  the  Psalms  of  David. 
At  the  early  age  of  forty-eight  he  died — cheer- 
fully fell  asleep  in  Jesus,  rejoicing  in  the  hope 
of  a  heavenly  inheritance.  Few  men  who  have 
ever  lived  have  crowded  their  days  with  more 
kind,  useful,  and  generous  actions. 

His  son,  Louis  Philippe,  acquired  the  sobri- 
quet of  le  Gros,  or  the  Fat,  from  his  excessive 
corpulence.  His  unwieldy  body  probably  con- 
tributed to  that  indolenceof  mind  which  induced 
him  to  withdraw  from  nearly  all  participation 
in  political  life.  Louis  XY.  was  one  of  the  vilest 
of  men,  and  by  a  portion  of  his  subjects  was 
thoroughly  detested.  Exasperated  by  an  act  of 
gross  despotism,  the  deputies  from  Brittany  of- 
fered to  furnish  Louis  Philippe  with  sixty  thou- 
sand men,  completely  armed,  to  overthrow  the 
reigning  dynasty,  and  to  establish  in  its  place 
the  House  of  Orleans.  The  prince  received  the 
deputation  courteously,  but  decidedly  declined 
embarking  in  the  enterprise,  avowing  that  he 
had  not  sufficient  energy  of  character  to  meet 


1785.J    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      17 


Pride  of  royalty. 


its  demand,  and  that  he  was  too  much  attached 
to  his  relative,  Louis  XV.,  to  engage  in  a  con- 
spiracy against  him.  He  was  an  amiable,  up- 
right man,  avoiding  notoriety,  and  devoting 
himself  to  literary  pursuits.  Being  of  the  blood 
royal,  the  etiquette  of  the  French  court  did  not 
allow  him  to  enter  into  marriage  relations  with 
any  one  in  whose  veins  the  blood  of  royalty 
did  not  flow.  His  first  wife,  Louise  Henriette 
de  Bourbon  Conti,  was  a  princess  of  royal  lin- 
eage. Upon  her  death  he  married  Madame  de 
Montesson,  a  beautiful  woman,  to  whom  he  was 
exceedingly  attached.  But  the  haughty  Court 
of  France  refused  to  recognize  the  marriaga 
Notwithstanding  his  earnest  solicitations,  he 
was  not  permitted  to  confer  upon  her  the  title 
of  Duchess  of  Orleans. 

Even  when  he  died,  in  the  year  1785,  court 
etiquette  would  not  allow  his  widow  to  assume 
any  public  demonstrations  of  mourning.  "  The 
blood  of  a  Capet,"  it  was  said,  "is  too  pure  to 
admit  of  a  recognized  alliance  below  the  rank  of 
royalty." 

Such,  in  brief,  was  the  character  and  career 
of  the  first  four  dukes  of  this  illustrious  house. 
We  are  thus  brought  down  to  the  exciting 
scenes  of  modern  history — to  scenes  in  which 

4—2 


18  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1747. 


Birth  ofEgalite. 


the  house  of  Orleans  has  acted  a  part  so  con- 
spicuous as  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  civil' 
ized  world. 

The  fourth  duke  of  whom  we  have  spoken, 
and  his  first  wife,  Henrietta  de  Bourbon  Conti, 
had  a  son  born  on  the  13th  of  April,  1747,  at 
the  Palace  of  St.  Cloud.  They  gave  their  child 
the  name  of  Louis  Philippe  Joseph  D'Orleans. 
During  the  life-time  of  his  father  he  bore  the 
title  of  the  Duke  de  Chartres.  No  expense  was 
spared  in  his  education,  his  parents  providing 
for  him  teachers  of  the  highest  eminence  in  all 
the  branches  of  knowledge.  Though  the  young 
prince  developed  much  energy  and  activity  of 
mind,  he  was  not  fond  of  study,  and  did  not 
make  any  remarkable  progress  in  book-learn- 
ing. 

Surrounded  by  flatterers,  and  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  almost  boundless  wealth,  as  the  appe- 
tites and  passions  of  youth  grew  strong,  he 
plunged  into  the  most  extravagant  excesses  of 
dissipation.  He  is  described  at  this  time  as  a 
young  man  of  handsome  features  and  graceful 
figure,  above  the  average  size.  His  skin  was 
remarkable  for  its  softness  and  whiteness,  and 
a  very  sweet  smile  generally  played  upon  his 
lips.  Though  simple  in  his  ordinary  style  of 


1785.]    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      19 


Fortune  of  the  Dnke  of  Orleans. 


living,  upon  all  state  occasions  he  displayed 
grandeur  commensurate  with  his  wealth  and 
rank.  Immense  as  was  the  fortune  to  which  he 
was  born,  it  was  greatly  enhanced  by  his  mar- 
riage with  the  Princess  Marie  Therese  Louise, 
only  daughter  of  the  Duke  of  Penthievre,  the 
most  richly-endowed  heiress  in  Europe.  Thus 
he  attained  wealth  which  made  him  the  richest 
subject  in  Europe,  and  which  enabled  him  al- 
most to  outvie  the  splendors  of  royalty.  But, 
notwithstanding  this  vast  wealth,  he  plunged 
so  recklessly  into  extravagance  that  his  pecun- 
iary affairs  became  much  embarrassed. 

His  father  died  in  the  year  1785,  just  as  the 
storms  of  the  French  Kevolution  were  begin- 
ning to  darken  the  horizon.  The  Duke  of  Char- 
tres  then  took  the  title  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans, 
and  rushed  into  the  tumult  of  revolution  with 
eagerness  and  energy,  which  caused  his  name 
to  resound  through  all  Europe,  and  which  final- 
ly brought  his  neck  beneath  the  slide  of  the 
guillotine. 

The  court,  under  Louis  XV.,  in  consequence 
of  its  arbitrary  measures,  about  the  year  1789, 
was  brought  into  collision  with  the  ancient  Par- 
liament, which  remonstrated,  and  even  refused 
to  register  the  royal  edicts.  The  Duke  of  Or- 


20  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1789, 

Democracy  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 

leans  headed  the  party  opposed  to  the  court. 
At  his  magnificent  mansion,  the  Palais  Royal, 
nearly  opposite  the  Tuileries,  the  leading  men 
in  the  Opposition,  Eochefoucault,  Lafayette,  and 
Mirabeau,  were  accustomed  to  meet,  concerting 
measures  to  thwart  the  crown,  and  to  compel 
the  convocation  of  the  States-General.  In  that 
way  alone  could  the  people  hope  to  resist  the 
encroachments  of  the  crown,  and  to  claim  any 
recognition  of  popular  rights.  The  people,  ac- 
customed to  the  almost  idolatrous  homage  of 
rank  and  power,  were  overjoyed  in  having,  as 
the  leading  advocate  of  their  claims,  a  prince  of 
the  blood.  The  court  was  greatly  exasperated. 
It  was  determined  that  the  high-born  leader  of 
the  revolutionary  party  should  feel  the  heaviest 
weight  of  the  royal  displeasure.  This  severity, 
however,  did  but  augment  the  popularity  of  the 
duke  among  the  people. 

Louis  XVI.,  through  his  advisers,  ordered 
the  Parliament  to  register  a  loan,  thus  compel- 
ling the  people  to  furnish  the  money  it  despot- 
ically demanded.  The  Opposition  in  vain  urged 
that  the  States-General  should  be  convened,  as 
alone  competent  to  impose  taxes.  The  royal 
measure  was  carried,  notwithstanding  the  Oppo- 
sition. As  the  keeper  of  the  seals,  amidst  the 


1789.]    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      21 


Wealth  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


most  profound  emotion  of  the  Parliament,  read 
the  decree,  the  Duke  of  Orleans  rose,  and,  with 
much  agitation  of  voice  and  manner,  inquired : 

"  Is  this  assemblage  a  lit  de  justice,  or  a  free 
consultation  ?" 

" It  is  a  royal  sitting"  the •  king  answered, 
somewhat  sternly. 

"  Then,"  replied  the  duke,  "  I  beg  that  your 
majesty  will  permit  me  to  deposit  at  your  feet, 
and  in  the  bosom  of  the  court,  the  declaration, 
that  I  regard  the  registration  as  illegal,  and  that 
it  will  be  necessary,  for  the  exculpation  of  those 
persons  who  are  held  to  have  deliberated  upon 
it,  to  add  that  it  is  by  express  command  of  the 
king." 

This  bold  act  announced  to  all  France  that  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  was  ready  to  place  himself  at 
the  head  of  the  opposition  to  the  court,  and  that 
he  was  endowed  with  the  courage  and  energy 
which  would  be  found  essential  to  maintain  that 
post.  The  wealth  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  was 
so  great  that  a  former  loan  of  twenty-five  mil- 
lion dollars  he  had  taken  up  himself.  Imme- 
diately upon  the  withdrawal  of  the  king  from 
the  Parliament,  the  Duke  of  Orleans  presented 
and  carried  a  resolve  declaring  the  action  which 
had  taken  place  as  illegal. 


22  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1789. 


Banishment  of  the  duke. 


The  king,  who  was  quite  under  the  influence 
of  the  stronger  mind  of  his  wife,  Maria  An- 
toinette, was  deeply  offended.  The  duke  was 
banished  from  Paris  to  his  rural  chateau  of 
Villers  Cotterets,  and  his  leading  friends  in  the 
Opposition  were  exiled  to  the  isles  of  Hieres. 
The  indignation  of  Parliament  was  roused,  and 
very  vigorous  resolutions  of  remonstrance  were 
adopted,  and  presented  to  the  king.  In  these 
resolves  it  was  written: 

"  The  first  prince  of  the  royal  family  is  exiled. 
It  is  asked  in  vain,  What  crime  has  he  commit- 
ted? If  the  Duke  of  Orleans  is  culpable,  we 
are  all  so.  It  was  worthy  of  the  first  prince  of 
your  blood  to  represent  to  your  majesty  that 
you  were  changing  the  sitting  into  a  lit  de  justice. 
If  exile  be  the  reward  for  fidelity  in  princes, 
we  may  ask  ourselves,  with  terror  and  with 
grief,  What  protection  is  there  for  law  and  lib- 
erty?" 

In  allusion  to  the  universal  impression  that 
the  king  was  urged  to  these  severe  measures  by 
the  influence  of  Maria  Antoinette,  the  Parlia- 
ment added,  "  Such  measures,  sire,  dwell  not  in 
your  own  heart  Such  examples  do  not  origi- 
nate from  your  majesty.  They  flow  from  anoth- 
er source.  Your  Parliament  supplicates  your 


1789.]    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.       23 

Popularity  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans.    . 

majesty  to  reject  those  merciless  counsels,  and 
to  listen  to  the  dictates  of  your  own  heart." 

The  plea  was  unavailing.  The  agitation 
throughout  France  was  rapidly  increasing — 
the  people  everywhere  struggling  against  the 
encroachments  of  the  crown.  From  all  parts  of 
the  kingdom  the  cry  arose  for  the  assembling 
of  the  States-General.  The  Duke  of  Orleans, 
maddened  by  his  banishment,  and  exasperated 
to  the  highest  degree  against  Maria  Antoinette, 
whom  he  considered  as  the  author  of  his  exile, 
was  intensely  engaged  in  plotting  measures  of 
revenge.  During  his  banishment  he  won  the 
affection^  of  the  peasantry  by  the  kindly  inter- 
est he  seemed  to  take  in  their  welfare.  He  chat- 
ted freely  with  the  farmers  and  the  day-laborers 
— entered  their  cottages  and  conversed  with 
their  families  on  the  most  friendly  terms — pre- 
sented dowries  to  young  brides,  and  stood  spon- 
sor for  infants. 

This  course  rapidly  increased  the  popularity 
of  the  duke  among  the  people,  and  the  Parlia 
ment  was  unceasing  in  its  solicitations  for  his 
recall.  The  court  became  embarrassed,  and  at 
length  gladly  availed  itself  of  the  opportunity 
of  releasing  him,  in  response  to  a  petition  from 
the  Duchess  of  Orleans. 


24  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1789. 

Assembling  of  the  States-General. 

-  » . 

The  current  of  the  revolution  was  now  be- 
ginning to  flow  with  resistless  flood.  The  hos- 
tility between  the  court  and  the  people  was 
hourly  increasing.  Famine  added  its  horrors 
to  the  general  tumult  and  agitation.  A  winter 
of  unparalleled  severity — the  winter  of  1789 — 
terribly  increased  the  general  suffering.  The 
Duke  of  Orleans  was  profuse  in  his  liberality, 
opening  a  public  kitchen,  and  supplying  the 
wants  of  famishing  thousands.  The  duke,  hav- 
ing thus  embarked,  without  reserve,  in  the  cause 
of  the  people,  added  to  his  own  popularity  and 
to  the  exasperation  of  the  court,  by  publicly  re- 
nouncing all  his  feudal  rights,  and  permitting 
the  public  to  hunt  and  shoot  at  pleasure  over 
his  vast  domains.  His  popularity  now  became 
immense.  The  journals  were  filled  with  hi* 
praises.  "Whenever  he  appeared  in  public,  mul- 
titudes followed  him  with  their  acclaim. 

On  the  4th  of  May,  1789,  the  States-General, 
or  National  Assembly,  met.  The  duke,  followed 
by  about  forty  others  of  the  nobility,  renounced 
all  his  aristocratic  privileges,  and  took  his  place 
as  an  equal  in  the  ranks  of  the  tiers  etat,  or  third 
estate,  as  the  common  people  were  called.  The 
clergy,  the  nobility,  and  the  people  then  consti- 
tuted the  three  estates  of  the  realm. 


1793.]    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      25 


Commotion  in  Paris. 


The  French  Revolution  was  now  advancing 
with  rapid  strides,  accompanied  by  anarchy,  vi- 
olence, and  bloodshed.  The  court  party  was 
increasingly  exasperated  against  the  popular 
duke,  and  many  stories  were  fabricated  against 
him  to  undermine  his  influence.  The  situation 
of  the  king  and  royal  family  became  daily  more 
irksome  and  perilous.  He  endeavored  to  es- 
cape, to  join  the  armies  of  Austria  and  Prussia, 
which  were  marching  to  his  relief.  He  was 
arrested  at  Yarennes,  brought  back  to  Paris, 
and  held  as  a  prisoner  in  the  Tuileries.  The 
question  was  now  discussed  of  deposing  the 
king  and  establishing  a  regency  under  the  Duke 
of  Orleans. 

The  first  National  Assembly,  called  the  Con- 
stituent, which  was  convened  to  draw  up  a  con- 
stitution for  France,  having  completed  its  work, 
was  dissolved;  and  another  assembly,  denom- 
inated the  Legislative,  was  chosen  to  enact  laws 
under  that  constitution.  The  allied  armies  of 
foreign  dynasties  were  on  the  march  to  rob  the 
French  people  of  their  constitution,  and  to  im- 
pose upon  them  the  absolute  despotism  of  the 
old  regime.  Fearful  riots  ensued  in  Paris.  The 
palace  of  the  Tuileries  was  stormed.  The  king, 
with  his  family,  fled  to  the  Legislative  Assem- 


26  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1793. 


Flight  of  the  nobles. 


bly  for  protection,  and  was  imprisoned  in  the 
Temple.  On  the  20th  of  January,  1793,  he  died 
upon  the  scaffold. 

The  National  Convention,  which  speedily 
succeeded  the  Legislative  Assembly,  brought 
the  accusation  of  treason  against  the  king — 
tried,  condemned,  and  executed  him.  The  Duke 
of  Orleans,  a  member  of  this  Convention,  voted 
for  the  death  of  the  king.  The  abolition  of 
monarchy  and  the  establishment  of  a  republic 
immediately  followed.  The  question  was  with 
./nuch  interest  discussed,  whether  the  republic 
should  be  federal,  like  that  of  the  United  States, 
or  integral,  like  the  ancient  republics  of  Greece 
and  Eome.  The  Duke  of  Orleans  advocated 
the  concentration  of  power  and  the  indivisibil- 
ity of  France.  Fanaticism  usurped  the  place 
of  reason;  the  guillotine  was  busy;  suspicions 
filled  the  air;  no  life  was  safe.  The  Duke  of 
Orleans  was  alarmed.  He  sent  his  daughter, 
under  the  care  of  Madame  de  Genlis,  to  En- 
gland. The  nobles  were  flying  in  all  direc- 
tions. Severe  laws  were  passed  against  the  emi- 
grants. The  duke,  who  had  assumed  the  sur- 
name of  Egalite",  or  Equality,  excited  suspicion 
by  placing  his  daughter  among  the  emigrants. 
It  was  said  that  he  had  no  confidence  in  the 


1792.]    THE  HOUSE   OF  ORLEANS.      29 


Petition  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


people  or  in  the  new  order  of  things.  To  lull 
these  suspicions,  the  duke  sent  a  petition  to  the 
Convention  on  the  21st  of  November,  1792, 
containing  the  following  statement: 

"Citizens, — You  have  passed  a  law  against 
those  cowards  who  have  fled  their  country  in 
the  moment  of  danger.  The  circumstance  I 
have  to  lay  before  you  is  peculiar:  My  daugh- 
ter, fifteen  years  of  age,  passed  over  to  England 
in  the  month  of  October,  1791,  with  her  gov- 
erness and  two  companions  of  her  studies.  Her 
governess,  Madame  de  Grenlis,  has  early  initia- 
ted them  in  liberal  views  and  republican  vir- 
tues. The  English  language  forms  a  part  of  the 
education  which  she  has  given  to  my  daughter. 
One  of  the  motives  of  this  journey  has  been  to 
acquire  the  pronunciation  of  that  tongue.  Be- 
sides that,  the  chalybeate  waters  of  England 
were  recommended  as  restoratives  of  my  daugh- 
ter's health.  It  is  impossible,  under  these  cir- 
cumstances, to  regard  the  journey  of  my  daugh- 
ter as  emigration.  I  feel  assured  that  the  law 
is  not  applicable  in  this  case.  But  the  slightest 
doubt  is  sufficient  to  distress  a  father.  'I  beg, 
therefore,  fellow-citizens,  that  you  will  relieve 
me  from  this  uneasiness." 

But  by  this  time  the  Convention  began  to 


30  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1792. 


Domestic  discord. 


look  upon  the  Duke  of  Orleans  with  suspicion. 
Rumors  were  in- circulation  that  many  pf  the 
people,  tired  of  republicanism  —  which  was 
crowding  the  prisons,  and  causing  blood  to 
gush  in  an  incessant  flow — wished  to  reinstate 
the  monarchy,  and  to  place  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans upon  the  throne.  The  Duchess  of  Or- 
leans, the  child  of  one  of  the  highest  nobles, 
was  not  in  sympathy  with  her  husband  in  his 
democratic  views.  His  boundless  profligacy 
had  also  alienated  her  affections,  so  that  there 
was  no  domestic  happiness  to  be  found  in  the 
gorgeous  saloons  of  the  Palais  Royal. 

Robespierre  wished  to  banish  the  Duke  of 
Orleans  from  France,  as  a  dangerous  man, 
around  whom  the  not  yet  extinct  spirit  of  roy- 
alty might  rally.  He  moved  in  the  Conven- 
tion, "That  all  the  relatives  of  Bourbon  Capet 
should  be  obliged,  within  eight  days,  to  quit  the 
territory  of  France  and  the  countries  then  oc- 
cupied by  the  Republican  armies." 

The  motion  was,  for  the  time,  frustrated  by 
the  following  expostulation  by  M.  Lamarque: 

"Would  it  not  be  the  extreme  of  injustice 
to  exile  all  of  the  Capets,  without  distinction  ? 
I  have  never  spoken  but  twice  to  Egalite'.  I 
am,  therefore,  not  open  to  the  suspicion  of  par- 


JV92.]    THE*  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      31 


Flight  of  General  Dumouriez. 


tiality,  but  I  have  closely  observed  his  conduct 
in  the  Revolution.  I  have  seen  him  deliver 
himself  up  to  it  entirely,  a  willing  victim  for  its 
promotion,  not  shrinking  from  the  greatest  sac- 
rifices; and  I  can  truly  assert  that  but  for  Ega- 
lite  we  never  should  have  had  the  States-Gen- 
eral— we  should  never  have  been  free." 

Thus  public  sentiment  fluctuated.  An  event 
soon  occurred  which  brought  matters  to  a  crisis. 
General  Dumouriez,  a  former  minister  of  Lou- 
13  XVI.,  was  in  command  of  the  army  on  the 
northern  frontier.  Disgusted  with  the  violence 
of  the  Convention,  which  was  silencing  all 
opposition  with  the  slide  of  the  guillotine,  and 
apprehensive  of  personal  danger,  from  the  con- 
sciousness that  he  was  suspected  of  not  being 
very  friendly  to  the  Government,  he  resolved  to 
abandon  the  country  which  he  thought  doomed 
to  destruction,  and  to  seek  safety  in  flight.  Louis 
Philippe,  the  eldest  son  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans, 
then  a  lad  of  about  16,  was  on  his  staff.  They 
fled  together.  This  aroused  popular  indigna- 
tion in  Paris  to  the  highest  pitch.  This  young 
prince,  Louis  Philippe,  then  entitled  the  Duke 
of  Chartres,  and  who,  as  subsequently  King  of 
the  French,  is  the  subject  of  this  memoir,  had 
written  in  a  letter  to  his  father,  which  was  in- 


32  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1792. 


Arrest  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


tercepted,  these  words :  "  I  see  the  Convention 
utterly  destroying  France."  It  was  believed 
that  Dumouriez  had  entered  into  a  plot  for 
placing  the  Duke  of  Orleans  on  the  throne,  and 
that  the  duke  was  cognizant  of  the  plan. 

A  decree  was  immediately  passed  ordering 
the  arrest  of  every  Bourbon  in  France.  The 
duke  was  arrested  and  conveyed  to  Marseilles, 
with  several  members  of  his  family.  Here  he 
was  held  in  durance  for  some  time,  and  was 
then  brought  to  Paris  to  be  tried  for  treason. 
Though  there  was  no  evidence  whatever  against 
him,  he  was  declared  guilty  of  being  "  an  ac- 
complice in  a  conspiracy  against  the  unity  and 
indivisibility  of  the  Republic,"  and  was  con- 
demned to  death. 

The  duke,  as  he  heard  the  sentence,  replied : 
"Since  you  were  predetermined  to  put  me  to 
death,  you  ought  at  least  to  have  sought  for 
more  plausible  pretexts  to  attain  that  end ;  for 
you  will  never  persuade  the  world  that  you 
deem  me  guilty  of  what  you  now  declare  me  to 
be  convicted.  However,  since  my  lot  is  decided, 
I  demand  that  you  will  not  let  me  languish  here 
until  to-morrow,  but  order  that  I  be  led  to  exe- 
cution instantly."  His  request  was  not  grant- 
ed ;  but  he  was  conducted  back  to  the  cells  of 


1793.]    THE  HOSUSE  OF  ORLEANS,      83 

Execution  of  Egalit4. 

the  Conciergerie,  to  be  executed  the  next  day. 
The  next  morning  he  was  placed  in  the  death- 
cart  at  the  Conciergerie,  with  four  others  of  the 
condemned,  to  be  conveyed  to  the  guillotine, 
which  stood  in  the  Place  de  la  Concorde.  lie 
was  elaborately  dressed  in  a  green  frock-coat, 
white  waistcoat,  doe-skin  breeches,  and  with 
boots  carefully  polished.  His  hair  was  dressed 
and  powdered  with  care.  As  the  cart  passed 
slowly  along  in  front  of  his  princely  abode,  the 
Palais  Royal,  and  through  immense  crowds, 
lining  the  streets,  who  formerly  had  been  fed 
by  his  liberality,  and  who  now  clamored  for  his 
death,  he  looked  around  upon  them  with  ap- 
parently perfect  indifference. 

At  the  guillotine  the  executioner  took  off  his 
coat,  and  was  about  to  draw  off  his  boots,  when 
he  said,  calmly,  "  It  is  only  loss  of  time ;  you 
will  remove  them  more  easily  from  my  lifeless 
limbs."  He  examined  the  keen  edge  of  the 
knife,  and  was  bound  to  the  plank.  The  slide 
fell,  and  his  head  dropped  into  the  basket. 
Thus  perished  Louis  Philippe  Egalite*  in  the 
46th  year  of  his  age.  It  was  the  6th  of  No- 
vember, 1793,  ten  months  after  Louis  XVI.  had 
perished  upon  the  same  scaffold.  The  immo- 
ralities of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  were  such  that  it 
4—3 


34:  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1773. 


Birth  of  Louis  Philippe. 


has  often  been  said  of  him,  "  Nothing  became 
his  life  so  much  as  his  manner  of  leaving  it." 
Louis  Philippe  Egalite,  inheriting  from  his 
ancestors  vast  opulence,  had  become,  by  his 
marriage  with  the  daughter  of  the  immensely 
wealthy  Duke  of  Penthievre,  the  possessor  of 
almost  royal  domains.  His  wife,  the  duchess, 
though  aristocratic  in  all  her  prepossessions, 
and  sympathizing  not  at  all  with  her  husband 
in  his  democratic  views,  was  a  woman  of  un- 
blemished character,  of  amiable  disposition,  and 
of  devoted  piety. 

Having  thus  given  a  brief  account  of  the 
origin  of  the  Orleans  family,  we  must,  at  the 
expense  of  a  little  repetition,  turn  back  to  the 
birth  of  Louis  Philippe,  the  oldest  son  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans,  and  the  subject  of  this  me- 
moir. 

Louis  Philippe  was  born  in  the  Palais  Roj^al, 
in  Paris,  on  the  6th  of  October,  1773.  In  his 
early  years,  he,  with  the  other  children  of  the 
ducal  family,  was  placed  under  the  care  and 
tuition  of  the  celebrated  Madame  de  Genlis. 
Until  the  death  of  his  father,  he  bore  the  title 
of  the  Duke  of  Chartres. 

"  The  Duke  of  Chartres,"  writes  Lamartine, 
"had  no  youth.  Education  suppressed  this  age 


1780.]    THE  HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      35 


His  daily  journal. 


in  the  pupils  of  Madame  de  Genlis.  Reflection, 
study,  premeditation  of  every  thought  and  act, 
replaced  nature  by  study,  and  instinct  by  will. 
At  seventeen  years  of  age,  the  young  prince 
had  the  maturity  of  advanced  years." 

Madame  de  Genlis  was  unwearied  in  her 
endeavors  to  confer  upon  her  illustrious  pupil 
the  highest  intellectual  and  religious  educa- 
tion. The  most  distinguished  professors  were 
appointed  to  instruct  in  those  branches  with 
which  she  was  not  familiar.  His  conduct  was 
recorded  in  a  minute  daily  journal,  from  which 
every  night  questions  were  read  subjecting  him 
to  the  most  searching  self-examination.  The 
questions  were  as  follows : 

1.  Have  I  this  day  fulfilled  all  my  duties  to- 
wards God,  my  Creator,  and   prayed  to  Him 
with  fervor  and  affection  ? 

2.  Have  I  listened  with  respect  and  atten- 
tion to  the  instructions  which  have  been  given 
me  to-day,  with  regard  to  my  Christian  duties, 
and  in  reading  works  of  piety? 

3.  Have  I  fulfilled  all  my  duties  this  day  to- 
wards those  I  ought  to  love  most  in  the  world 
— my  father  and  my  mother. 

4  Have  I  behaved  with  mildness  and  kind- 
ness towards  my  sister  and  my  brothers? 


Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1780. 


Educational  influences. 


5.  Have  I  been  docile,  grateful,  and  attentive 
to  my  teachers? 

6.  Have  I  been  perfectly  sincere  to-day,  dis- 
obliging no  one,  and  speaking  evil  of  no  one? 

7.  Have  I  been  as  discreet,  prudent,  charita- 
ble, modest,  and  courageous  as  may  be  expected 
at  my  age  ? 

8.  Have  I  shown  no  proof  of  that  weakness  or 
effeminacy  which  is  so  contemptible  in  a  man? 

9.  Have  I  done  all  the  good  I  could? 

10.  Have  I  shown  all  the  marks  of  attention 
I  ought  to  the  persons,  present  or  absent,  to 
whom  I  owe  kindness,  respect,  and  affection  ? 

These  questions  were  read  to  him  every 
night  from  his  journal.  To  each  one  he  re- 
turned a  reply  in  writing.  He  then  kneeled, 
and  in  prayer  implored  the  forgiveness  of  his 
sins,  and  Divine  guidance  for  the  future.  Under 
such  training,  notwithstanding  the  enjoj^ment 
of  almost  boundless  wealth,  the  influence  of  a 
dissolute  father,  and  the  measureless  corrup- 
tions of  the  times,  Louis  Philippe  developed  a 
character  embellished  by  the  loftiest  principles 
and  the  purest  integrity. 

The  Orleans  children,  consisting  of  three  sons 
and  a  daughter,  were  taught  in  their  earliest 
years  to  speak  French,  English,  German,  and 


1785.]    THE   HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      37 

Mental  and  physical  training. 

Italian,  so  that  each  of  these  languages  became, 
as  it  were,  vernacular.  At  St.  Leu,  where  they 
resided  most  of  the  time,  a  garden  was  laid  out, 
which  they  dug  and  cultivated  with  their  own 
hands.  A  German  gardner  superintended 
their  work,  while  a  German  valet  accompanied 
them  in  their  morning  walks.  A  physician, 
who  was  a  distinguished  chemist,  instructed 
them  in  botany,  pointing  out  the  medicinal  vir- 
tues of  the  various  plants.  They  were  taught 
to  manufacture  numerous  articles  of  domestic 
utility,  and  the  boys  became  skillful  in  turn- 
ing, weaving,  basket-making,  and  other  mechan- 
ical employments.  The  Duke  of  Chartres  be- 
came a  very  skillful  cabinet-maker,  and,  aided 
by  his  brother,  the  Duke  of  Montpensier,  man- 
ufactured a  bureau  for  a  poor  woman  at  St.  Leu 
which  was  equal  to  any  which  could  be  found 
in  the  market.  They  were  also  accustomed  to 
fatigue  and  hardship,  that  they  might  be  pre- 
pared for  any  of  the  vicissitudes  of  future  life. 
Madame  de  Genlis,  in  reference  to  this  training 
of  her  pupij,  and  his  subsequent  trials  and  pri- 
vations, writes: 

"How  often,  since  his  misfortunes,  have  I 
applauded  myself  for  the  education  I  have 
given  him;  for  having  taught  him  the  principal 


38  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1785. 

Testimony  of  Madame  de  Genlis. 

modern  languages;  for  having  accustomed  him 
to  wait  on  himself;  to  despise  all  kinds  of  effem- 
inacy; to  sleep  habitually  on  a  wooden  bed, 
with  no  covering  but  a  mat ;  to  expose  himself 
to  heat,  cold,  and  rain ;  to  accustom  himself  to 
fatigue  by  daily  and  violent  exercise,  by  walk- 
ing ten  or  fifteen  miles  with  leaden  soles  to  his 
shoes;  and,  finally,  for  having  given  him  the 
taste  and  habit  of  travelling.  He  had  lost  all 
that  he  inherited  from  birth  and  fortune ;  and 
nothing  remained  but  what  he  had  received 
from  nature  and  me." 

In  one  of  her  earlier  letters,  she  wrote:  "The 
Duke  of  Chartres  has  greatly  improved  in  dis- 
position during  the  past  year.  He  was  born 
with  good  inclinations,  and  has  now  become  in- 
telligent and  virtuous.  Possessing  none  of  the 
frivolities  of  the  age,  he  disdains  the  puerilities 
which  occupy  the  thoughts  of  so  many  young 
men  of  rank — such  as  fashions,  dress,  trinkets, 
follies  of  all  kinds,  and  a  desire  for  novelties. 
He  has  no  passion  for  money,  is  disinterested, 
despises  glare,  and  is,  consequently,  truly  no- 
ble. Finally,  he  has  an  excellent  heart,  which 
is  common  to  his  brothers  and  sister,  and  which, 
joined  to  reflection,  is  capable  of  producing  all 
other  good  qualities." 


STORMING   THE    BASTII.H. 


1785.J    THE  HOUSE  OF  OKLEANS.      41 


Demolition  of  the  Bastile. 


During  the  boyhood  of  Louis  Philippe,  rev- 
olutionary principles  were  rapidly  spreading 
over  France ;  and,  as  he  approached  manhood, 
they  had  reached  their  maturity.  The  example 
of  his  father,  and  the  teachings  of  Madame  de 
Genlis,  inclined  him  strongly  in  the  direction  of 
popular  rights,  though  his  mother  did  not  at  all 
sympathize  with  these  revolutionary  principles. 
When  the  exasperated  people  rose  and  demol- 
ished the  Bastile — the  symbol  and  the  instru- 
ment of  as  great  despotic  power  as  ever  existed 
upon  earth — Madame  de  Genlis  took  her  pupils 
into  Paris  to  witness  the  sublime  drama.  In 
describing  the  scene,  she  writes  eloquently : 

"  This  redoubtable  fortress  was  covered  with 
men,  women,  and  children,  working  with  un- 
equalled ardor,  even  on  the  most  lofty  parts  of 
the  building  and  on  its  turrets.  The  astonish- 
ing number  of  these  voluntary  laborers,  their 
activity,  their  enthusiasm,  their  delight  at  see- 
ing the  fall  of  that  terrible  monument  of  tyran- 
ny— these  avenging  hands,  which  seemed  con- 
secrated by  Providence,  and  which  annihilated 
with  such  rapidity  the  work  of  many  centuries 
— all  this  spoke  at  once  to  the  imagination  and 
the  heart." 

When  the  Duke  of  Chartres  was  informed 


42  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1785., 

The  Duke  of  Chartres  joins  the  Jacobin  Club. 

that  the  Assembly  had  annulled  all  the  rights 
of  primogeniture — thus  depriving  him,  as  the 
first-born,  of  his  exclusive  right  to  the  title  and 
the  estate — he  threw  his  arms  around  his  broth- 
er, the  Duke  of  Montpensier,  and  said,  "Now, 
indeed,  we  are  brothers  in  every  respect."  The 
unconcealed  liberal  opinions  of  the  young 
prince  increased  the  exasperation  of  the  court 
against  the  whole  Orleans  family.  And  when, 
guided  by  his  radical  father,  and  in  opposition 
to  the  advice  of  Madame  de  Genlis,  the  young 
duke  became  a  member  of  the  Jacobin  Club — 
then  numbering,  as  it  was  estimated,  four  hun- 
dred thousand  in  France — the  indignation  of 
the  court  reached  its  highest  pitch. 

On  the  20th  of  November,  1785,  the  young 
Duke  of  Chartres,  then  in  his  thirteenth  year, 
became  colonel  of  the  nineteenth  regiment  of 
dragoons.  He  proceeded,  not  long  after,  to 
Vendome,  and  devoted  himself,  with  all  the  en- 
thusiasm of  youth,  to  the  duties  of  his  profes- 
sion. His  democratic  principles  led  him,  in 
opposition  to  the  example  of  most  of  his  broth- 
er-officers, to  associate  quite  familiarly  with  the 
common  soldiers. 

u  Far  from  imitating  the  example  of  these 
young  noblemen,  who  disdained  to  mix  or  con- 


1785.]    THE   HOUSE  OF  ORLEANS.      43 


His  affability. 


verse  with  the  soldiers,  the  duke  was  constantly 
in  the  midst  of  them,  and  the  advice  and  rep- 
rimands which  they  received  from  his  lips  had 
double  the  force  of  usual  orders.  On  every 
occasion  he  proved  himself  the  soldier's  friend. 
He  heard  their  complaints  with  kindness,  and 
the  generous,  noble  familiarity  with  which  he 
replied*  to  their  demands  in  a  little  time  won 
for  him  all  their  hearts.  Strengthened  by  those 
affections,  which  he  so  well  knew  how  to  merit, 
he  was  enabled,  without  any  exertion,  to  estab- 
lish and  preserve  the  strictest  discipline.  His 
men  obeyed  him  with  pleasure,  because  his  or- 
ders were  always  given  with  urbanity. 

"His  exemplary  conduct  had  the  happiest 
influence  over  the  whole  garrison  of  Yendome. 
The  soldiers  now  forgot  his  youth ;  the  oldest 
officers  found  in  him  such  intelligence  and 
punctuality  as  sometimes  left  their  experience 
in  arrear.  He  frequently  reached  the  stables, 
in  the  morning,  before  the  lieutenant,  whose 
duty  it  was  to  call  there;  and  he  exhibited 
equal  energy  in  every  other  subject.  His  lieu- 
tenant-colonel, imagining  that  this  too  frequent 
appearance  among  the  men  would  lessen  that 
respect  for  the  dignity  of  colonel  which  he  con- 
sidered essential  to  the  maintenance  of  disci- 


44  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1788. 


Noble  sentiment. 


pline,  ventured  to  remonstrate  with  him  upon 
his  conduct.     He  replied: 

" '  I  do  not  think  that  I  shall  forfeit  the  re 
spect  of  my  men,  or  be  less  entitled  to  their  re 
gard,  by  giving  them  an  example  of  punctu- 
ality, and  by  being  the  first  to  submit  myself 
to  the  demands  of  discipline.'  "* 

*  Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe,  King  of  the  French, 
ay  Rev.  G.  N.  Wright. 


1791.]  THE  EXILE.  45 

Plans  for  the  invasion  of  France. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  EXILE. 

•  • 

IN  the  month  of  August,  1791,  the  Duke  of 
Chartres  left  Vendome  with  his  regiment, 
and  went  to  Valenciennes,  where  he  spent  the 
winter.  He  had  been  appointed  commandant 
of  that  place,  and,  young  as  he  was,  discharged 
the  important  duties  of  the  position  with  abil- 
ity and  firmness,  which  secured  for  him  a  very 
high  reputation.  The  emigrant  nobles  had  as- 
sembled on  the  French  frontier,  in  the  elector- 
ate of  Treves,  where  they  were  organizing  their 
forces  for  the  invasion  of  France.  It  was  un- 
derstood that  Leopold  II.,  then  Emperor  of  Ger- 
many, was  co-operating  with  them,  and  was  for- 
warding large  bodies  of  troops  to  many  points 
along  the  German  banks  of  the  Rhine  for  a  cru- 
sade into  France. 

The  French  government  demanded  of  the 
emperor  an  explanation  of  his  intentions.  He 
replied :  "  We  do  not  know  of  any  armaments 
in  the  Austrian  states  which  can  be  magnified 


46  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1792. 


The  campaign  of  1792. 


into  preparations  for  war."  Though  Louis 
XVI.  was  in  cordial  sympathy  with  the  emi- 
grants, and,  by  his  secret  agents,  was  urging  the 
Emperor  of  Austria  to  lend  him  troops  to  aid 
in  crushing  the  revolution  in  France,  still  he 
was  compelled  not  only  to  dissemble,  but  on  the 
20th  of  April,  1792,  publicly  to  declare  war 
against  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  who  was  broth- 
er of  his  queen,  Maria  Antoinette. 

The  Duke  of  Orleans,  Egalite,  begged  permis- 
sion of  the  king  to  join  the  armies  of  revolu- 
tionized France  in  their  march  against  Austria, 
and  to  take  with  him  his  two  oldest  sons,  the 
Duke  of  Chartres  (Louis  Philippe),  and  the 
Duke  of  Montpensier.  In  the  campaign  of 
1792,  which  ensued,  both  of  these  young  men 
acquired  distinction  and  promotion.  General 
Biron,  in  command,  wrote  to  the  minister  of 
war: 

"  Messieurs  Chartres  and  Montpensier  have 
accompanied  me  as  volunteers,  and,  being  ex- 
posed for  the  first  time  to  a  brisk  fire  from  the 
enemy,  behaved  with  the  utmost  heroism  and 
intrepidity." 

The  Duke  of  Chartres,  in  command  of  a  bri- 
gade of  dragoons,  was  soon  after  transferred  to 
a  corps  at  Metz,  under  General  Kellerman,  who 


1792.]  THE   EXILE.  47 

The  invasion  of  Prance. 

subsequently  obtained  such  renown  in  the  wars 
of  the  Empire. 

When  the  Duke  of  Chartres  first  appeared  at 
head-quarters,  General  Kellerman,  not  know- 
ing who  he  was,  and  surprised  by  his  youthful 
appearance,  exclaimed : 

"Ah,  monsieur!  I  never  before  have  had 
the  pleasure  of  seeing  so  young  a  general  offi- 
cer. How  have  you  contrived  to  be  made  a 
general  so  soon  ?" 

The  duke  replied :  "  By  being  a  son  of  him 
who  made  a  colonel  of  you."  They  clasped 
hands  cordially,  and  a  warm  friendship  com- 
menced between  them. 

In  July,  1792,  the  united  armies  of  Prussia 
and  Austria  commenced  their  march  from  the 
German  fortresses  upon  the  Ebine  into  France. 
The  emigrant  nobles,  and  all  their  partisans, 
were  received  into  the  ranks  of  these  invaders. 
Their  combined  strength  amounted  to  160,000 
men.  The  Duke  of  Brunswick,  in  command 
of  the  united  armies,  issued  from  Coblentz,  on 
on  the  15th  of  July,  1792,  his  famous  manifesto, 
in  which  he  declared,  "  That  he  would  punish 
as  rebels  every  Frenchman  who  should  oppose 
the  allied  army ;  and  that,  should  any  attack  be 
made  upon  the  royal  family  in  the  Tuileries,  the 


48  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1792. 


Proclamation  of  the  Assembly. 


whole  city  should  be  given  up  to  destruction, 
and  the  rebels  to  instant  death." 

In  view  of  these  terrible  menaces,  the  Leg- 
islative Assembly  issued  a  proclamation,  in 
which  it  was  said : 

"A  numerous  army  has  moved  upon  our 
frontiers.  All  those  who  are  enemies  to  liberty 
have  armed  themselves  against  our  constitu- 
tion. Citizens !  the  country  is  in  danger  I  Let 
all  those  who  have  had  the  happiness  of  taking 
up  arms  in  the  cause  of  liberty  remember  that 
they  are  Frenchmen,  and  free;  that  their  fel- 
low-citizens enjoy  in  their  homes  security  of 
persons  and  property;  that  the  magistrates  are 
vigilant;  that  every  thing  depends  on  calm  res- 
olution ;  that  they  should  take  care  to  acknowl- 
edge the  majesty  of  law,  and  the  country  will 
still  be  safe." 

The  plan  of  the  campaign,  adopted  by  the 
Duke  of  Brunswick,  was  to  press  rapidly  for- 
ward, with  his  combined  army,  from  the  banks 
of  the  Rhine  to  Paris,  cut  off  its  supplies,  and 
by  famine  to  compel  it  to  surrender.  He 
would  then  destroy  the  liberal  constitution, 
punish  and  disperse  the  friends  of  popular 
rights,  and  restore  the  king  to  the  absolutism 
of  the  old  regime.  To  oppose  this  formidable 


1792.]  THE  EXILE.  51 

Imprisonment  of  Lafayette. 

army  of  invasion,  France  had  one  corps  of 
14,000  men  near  Metz,  and  another  of  33,000 
at  Sedan,  under  General  Dumouriez.  General 
Lafayette  had  been  in  command  of  the  latter 
force;  but,  by  his  opposition  to  some  of  the 
radical  measures  of  the  Convention,  had  excited 
the  hostility  of  the  Paris  mob  and  the  Jacobin' 
clubs.  They  had  burned  him  in  effigy  at  the 
Palais  Royal,  accused  him  of  treason  before  the 
Assembly,  and  set  a  price  upon  his  head.  Ar- 
gument was  of  no  avail  against  the  fury  of  the 
populace — in  flight  only  was  his  safety.  While 
thus  pursued  by  the  Jacobins  of  Paris  as  an 
aristocrat,  he  was  arrested  by  a  patrol  of  the 
Austrian  army  as  a  democrat.  With  the  great- 
est-secrecy, his  captors  hurried  him  to  Olmutz, 
where  he  was  thrown  into  close  confinement, 
and  subjected  to  the  most  cruel  privations.  It 
was  two  years  before  his  friends  could  discover 
the  place  of  his  captivity.  His  wife  and  daugh- 
ters then,  after  much  difficulty  and  delay,  suc- 
ceeded in  obtaining  permission  to  share  the 
glooms  of  his  dungeon.  It  was  not  until  after 
an  imprisonment  of  five  years  that  he  was  set 
at  liberty,  Napoleon  commanding  his  release 
in  tones  which  Austria  did  not  dare  to  disre- 
gard. 


52  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1792. 


Measures  of  defense. 


The  proclamation  by  the  Assembly  that  the 
country  was  in  danger,  caused  volunteers  in 
large  numbers  to  set  out  from  every  portion 
of  France.  From  Paris  alone,  in  three  days, 
an  army  of  32,000  men,  completely  equipped, 
were  on  the  advance  to  the  scene  of  conflict. 
General  Dumouriez,  in  command  at  Sedan, 
drew  up  his  lines  of  defense  before  the  defiles 
of  Argoun,  where  he  thought  he  could  make  the 
most  effectual  stand  against  the  invading  host. 
The  Duke  of  Brunswick  fell  fiercely  upon  his 
left  wing,  and,  breaking  through,  poured  his 
troops  like  a  flood  into  the  plains  of  Cham- 
pagne. For  a  time  a  terrific  panic  spread 
through  the  French  arnry,  and  it  became  need- 
ful for  Generals  Dumouriez  and  Kellerman  to 
unite  their  forces.  In  the  mean  time,  the  tri- 
umphant Prussians,  defiling  rapidly  by  Grand- 
pre  and  Croix-aux-Bqis,  were  approaching  Cha- 
lons. 

The  French  troops  concentrated  at  Valmy. 
There  they  drew  up  in  line  of  battle,  to  arrest 
the  advance  of  their  foes.  The  second  line  of 
the  French  army  was  commanded  by  the  Duke 
of  Chartes.  The  battle  which  ensued  was  one 
of  the  most  memorable  and  hard-fought  in 
French  history.  In  the  early  morning  a  dense 


1792.J  THE  EXILE.  53 

Battle  of  Val  my. 

mist  covered  the  field  of  conflict  At  eleven 
o'clock  the  fog  dispersed,  and  the  sun  came  out 
brightly,  revealing  the  Prussian  9olumns  ad- 
vancing in  beautiful  order,  with  a  glittering  dis- 
play of  caparisoned  horses  and  polished  weap- 
ons, deploying  with  as  much  precision  as  if  on 
a  field  of  parade.  The  eye  took  in  at  a  glance 
100,000  men  preparing  for  the  death-struggle. 
It  was,  indeed^  an  imposing  spectacle,  for1  such 
hosts  had  then  been  rarely  collected  on  any 
field  of  blood. 

Neither  party  seemed  disposed  to  come  into 
close  contact  with  the  other,  but  each  brought 
forward  its  batteries,  and  a  terrific  cannonade 
commenced,  which  continued  until  the  close  of 
the  day.  It  was  estimated  that  forty  thousand 
balls  were  hurled  by  the  opposing  armies  into 
each  other's  ranks.  Each  army,  however,  main- 
tained its  position.  Yet  it  was  considered  a 
French  victory,  for  the  Prussians  failed  in 
their  attempt  to  break  through  the  lines  of  the 
French,  and  the  French  succeeded  in  arresting 
the  march  of  the  Prussians.  Indeed,  it  was 
admitted  by  the  Prussians  that  their  plan  was 
hopelessly  thwarted.  The  Duke  of  Brunswick 
proposed  an  armistice  to  the  French  officers, 
and  this  was  speedily  followed  by  the  evacua- 


54  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1792. 

Gallantry  of  the  Duke  of  Chartres. 

tion  of  the  French  territory  by  the  whole  body 
of  Prussian  troops.  Thus,  for  the  time,  the 
Germanic  project  of  invasion  was  abandoned. 

The  Duke  of  Obartres  again,  upon  this  occa- 
sion, distinguished  himself  by  bravery  and  mil- 
itary skill.  General  Kellerman,  in  his  official 
report  of  the  battle,  said :  "  I  shall  only  partic- 
ularize, among  those  who  have  shown  distin- 
guished courage,  M.  Chartres  and  his  aid-de- 
camp, M.  Montpensier,  whose  extreme  youth 
renders  his  presence  of  mind,  during  one  of 
the  most  tremendous  cannonades  ever  heard,  so 
very  remarkable." 

It  will  be  observed  that  General  Kellerman 
speaks  of  the  young  dukes  as  simply  M.  Char- 
tres and  M.  Montpensier.  At  that  time  all  hon- 
orary titles  were  abolished  in  France,  and  the 
highest  nobles  were  addressed,  as  were  the 
humblest  peasants,  by  the  only  title  of  Citizen. 
Still,  the  lower  classes  regarded  with  great 
jealousy  those  higher  orders  to  whom  they  had 
been  accustomed  to  pay  the  homage  which 
slaves  render  their  masters.  The  laborers,  the 
humble  artisans,  the  toil-worn  peasants,  could 
not  appear  with  any  thing  like  equality  in  the 
presence  of  the  high-born  men  and  courtly 
dames  who,  through  their  ancestry  of  many 


1792.]  THE   EXILE.  55 

Embarrassmeut  of  Egalite. 

generations,  had  been  accustomed  to  wealth  and 
rank  and  power.  Thus,  to  the  lower  orders,  the 
dress  of  a  gentleman,  the  polite  bearing  of  the 
prince,  the  courtly  manner  of  the  noble,  excited 
suspicion,  and  created  hostile  feelings. 

Even  Egalite  himself,  though  he  had  re- 
nounced all  his  titles,  all  his  feudal  rights,  and 
had  assumed,  as  far  as  possible,  the  manners  of 
a  blunt,  plain-spoken  man,  was  still,  next  to 
the  king,  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  richest  rev- 
enue in  France.  He  could  by  no  possibility 
place  himself  upon  a  social  equality  with  his 
boot-black.  He  manifested  no  disposition  to 
divide  his  vast  possessions  with  the  mob  in 
Paris,  and  to  send  his  wife  to  work  with  the 
washer-women,  and  his  daughter  to  a  factory, 
and  to  earn  himself  his  daily  bread  by  menial 
toil.  And  the  washer-women  were  asking, 
"Why  should  we  toil  at  the  tub,  and  Citizeness 
Orleans  ride  in  her  carriage  and  dress  in  satins? 
We  are  as  good  as  she,  and  our  blood  is  as 
red."  And  at  the  corners  of  the  streets,  the  un- 
combed mob  were  beginning  to  inquire,  "Why 
should  Citizen  Orleans,  who,  by  adopting  the 
title  of  Egalite,  has  confessed  himself  to  be  only 
our  equal,  be  in  possession  of  magnificent  pal- 
aces, and  of  thousands  of  acres  of  the  public 


56  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1792. 


Continued  war  against  France. 


domain,  and  of  a  revenue  of  millions  of  francs, 
while  we  dwell  in  hovels,  and  eat  the  coarsest 
food,  and,  by  the  most  menial  toil,  obtain  a  bare 
subsistence?  Citizen  Orleans  has  given  up  his 
titles,  as  he  ought  to  have  done;  now  let  him 
give  up  his  enormous  estates,  and  divide  them 
among  us,  his  brethren ;  and,  if  he  is  unwilling 
to  do  this,  let  us  compel  him  to  do  so." 

Louis  Philippe,  accustomed  to  profound  re- 
flection, and  trained  in  the  school  of  these  tre- 
mendous political  agitations,  clearly  foresaw  all 
these  menaces.  He  was  well  aware  that  it  was 
no  longer  safe  for  him  to  be  in  Paris,  and  that 
the  perils  of  the  battle-field  were  among  the 
least  he  had  to  encounter.  Though  the  Prus- 
sian troops  had  withdrawn  from  the  alliance 
against  France,  the  Austrians,  encouraged  by 
the  intrigues  and  the  gold  of  the  British  cabi- 
net, still  continued  the  conflict.  The  Austrian 
court  had  an  additional  motive  for  persever- 
ance, in  the  war  against  revolutionary  France, 
in  the  anxiety  it  felt  for  the  safety  of  the  Aus- 
trian princess,  Marie  Antoinette. 

On  the  5th  of  November,  1792,  the  French 
army,  under  General  Dumouriez,  found  itself 
intrenched  upon  the  heights  of  Jemappes.  Di- 
rectly before  it  was  the  camp  of  the  Austrians, 


1792.]  THE  EXILE.      •  57 

The  Battle  of  Jemappes. 

containing  a  veteran  force  of  twenty-two  thou- 
sand men,  commanded  by  General  Clarfait. 

The  renowned  battle  of  Jemappes  ensued, 
which  commenced,  after  a  cannonade  of  three 
hours,  by  an  attack  upon  the  whole  of  the  Aus- 
trian lines  by  the  entire  French  army.  Again 
the  young  Duke  of  Chartres,  who  commanded 
the  centre,  greatly  distinguished  himself  by  his 
coolness,  bravery,  and  skill.  The  carnage  was 
serious  on  both  sides,  and  for  some  hours  the  re- 
sult was  doubtful.  At  length  victory  declared 
in  favor  of  the  French.  The  Austrians,  driven 
from  all  their  positions,  fled,  leaving  the  battle- 
field covered  with  their  dead,  and  abandoning 
nearly  all  their  cannon  to  the  victors. 

The  French  vigorously  pursued  the  routed 
Austrians  until  they  again  overtook  them,  and 
drove  them  out  of  the  kingdom.  On  the  8th 
day  after  the  victory  of  Jemappes,  Dumouriez 
advanced  the  French  standard  to  Brussels.  As 
we  have  mentioned,  the  sister  of  the  Duke  of 
Chartres,  the  Princess  Eugene  Louise  Adelaide, 
with  her  governess,  Madame  de  Genlis,  had 
been  included  in  the  prescriptive  laws  against 
emigration.  The  Duke  of  Chartres  visited  them 
in  Switzerland,  where  they  had  taken  refuge, 
and  conducted  them  to  Tornay. 


58  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1792. 


Peril  of  the  Orleans  Family. 


While  there,  a  new  decree  was  issued  by  the 
Assembly,  declaring  that  every  member  of  the 
Bourbon  family  then  in  France,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  royal  household  itself,  which 
was  he-Id  in  imprisonment  in  the  Temple  await- 
ing trial  under  the  charge  of  treason,  should 
leave  France,  and  all  the  territory  occupied  by 
the  newly-established  Republic,  within  eight 
days.  The  position  of  the  Orleans  branch  of 
the  Bourbon  family  now  became  every  hour 
increasingly  perilous.  The  nation  was  demand- 
ing the  life  of  the  king,  and  the  banishment  of 
all  who  bore  his  name.  St.  Just,  in  urging  in 
the  Assembly  this  decree  of  banishment,  said: 
"As  to  the  king,  we  shall  keep  him ;  and  you 
know  for  ivhat?"1"1 

The  Duke  of  Chartres,  who  very  fully  com- 
prehended the  peril  in  which  his  father's  fami- 
ly was  involved,  urged  him  to  avail  himself  of 
the  decree  of  banishment,  which  opened  an 
honorable  avenue  of  escape  for  him,  and  all  his 
family,  from  France. 

"  You  will  assuredly,"  said  he  to  his  father, 
"  find  yourself  in  an  appalling  situation.  Louis 
XVI.  is  about  to  be  accused  before  an  assembly 
of  which  you  are  a  member.  You  must  sit  be- 
fore the  king  as  his  judge.  Reject  the  ungra- 


1792.]  THE  EXILE.  59 

Decision  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 

cious  duty;  withdraw,  with  your  family,  to 
America,  and  seek  a  calm  retreat,  far  from  the 
enemies  of  France,  and  there  await  the  return 
of  happier  days." 

But  the  Duke  of  Orleans  did  not  deem  it  con- 
sistent with  his  honor  to  desert  his  post  in  the 
hour  of  danger.  Yet  the  arguments  urged  by 
his  son  were  so  strong  that  he  desired  him  to 
consult  an  influential  member  of  the  Assembly 
upon  the  subject.  The  deputy  replied : 

"I  am  incompetent  to  give  your  father  any 
advice.  Our  positions  are  dissimilar.  I  my- 
self seek  redress  for  personal  injuries.  Your 
father,  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  ought  to  obey  the 
dictates  of  his  conscience  as  a  prince,  and  the 
dictates  of  duty  as  a  citizen." 

This  undecided  answer  led  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans to  the  decision  that,  in  the  prominent  po- 
sition which  he  occupied  as  a  citizen  of  rank 
and  wealth,  he  could  not  with  honor  abandon 
his  country  in  her  hour  of  peril.  The  Duke  of 
Chartres  desisted  from  any  further  solicitation, 
and,  oppressed  with  much  anxiety,  returned  to 
the  army. 

The  badge  of  the  Bourbons  was  a  white  ban- 
ner. The  insurgents,  if  we  may  so  call  the  op- 
ponents, of  all  varieties  of  opinions,  who  assailed 


Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1791 


Origin  of  the  Tri-color. 


the  ancient  despotism,  at  the  siege  of  the  Bas- 
tile,  wore  red  cockades.  But  very  many  were 
in  favor  of  monarchy  who  were  also  in  favor 
of  constitutional  liberty.  Blue  had  been,  in 
ancient  times,  the  royal  color,  and  they  adopted 
that.  Others,  who  were  in  favor  of  the  Bour- 
bons, and  advocated  reform  only,  not  revolu- 
tion, adopted  white,  the  livery  of  the  Bour- 
bons. Thus  arose  the  celebrated  tri-color  flag, 
which  became  the  emblem  of  all  in  France  who 
adopted  the  principles  of  political  liberalism, 
whether  monarchists  or  republicans.  The  white 
banner  of  the  Bourbons  and  the  tri-color  of  the 
revolutionists  thus  became  arrayed  against  each 
other. 

It  was  well  known  that  there  was  a  strong 
party  in  favor  of  placing  the  Duke  of  Orleans 
upon  the  throne.  The  king  was  awaiting  his 
trial  in  the  Temple.  The  monarchy  was  vir- 
tually overthrown,  and  a  republic  was  estab- 
lished. The  Republicans  were  in  great  fear  of 
a  reaction,  which  might  re-establish  the  throne 
in  favor  of  the  Orleans  family.  It  was,  there- 
fore, proposed  in  the  Assembly  that  the  Duke 
of  Orleans  and  his  sons  should  be  banished 
from  France.  But  it  could  not  be  denied  that 
the  Duke  of  Orleans  had  been  one  of  the  most 


1792.]  THE   EXILE.  61 

The  Decree  of  Banishment. 

prominent  leaders  in  the  revolution.  He  bad 
given  all  his  influence,  and  consecrated  his 
immense  wealth,  to  the  cause.  He  had  made 
great  sacrifices,  and  had  alienated  himself  en- 
tirely from  the  royal  family,  and  from  the  no- 
bility generally,  by  his  bold  advocacy  of  demo- 
cratic principles.  Under  these  circumstances, 
it  seemed  peculiarly  ungrateful  to  proscribe 
and  persecute  him,  merely  because  the  blood 
of  the  Bourbons  flowed  in  his  veins,  and  be- 
cause he  was  born  near  the  throne. 

After  a  violent  discussion  in  the  Assembly, 
the  decree  of  banishment  was  passed.  But  the 
friends  of  the  duke  rallied,  and  succeeded,  after 
a  struggle  of  two  days,  in  obtaining  a  reversal 
of  the  decree.  It  was  known  that  the  Duke  of 
Chartres  had  urged  his  father  to  yield  to  the 
decree,  and  to  retire  from  France.  This  in- 
creased the  suspicion  that  the  Duke  of  Char- 
tres was  not  friendly  to  the  new  state  of  things 
in  republican,  anarchic,  France. 

"  It  can  not  be  denied,"  says  a  French  histo- 
rian, "that  upon  this  occasion  the  young  prince 
evinced  that  high  sagacity  which,  by  foreseeing 
events,  succeeds  in  dispersing  their  dangers. 
He  looked  upon  it  that  the  revocation  of  the 
decree  of  banishment  against  his  family  was  a 


62  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1793. 


Battle  of  Nerwiude. 


great  misfortune;  because  the  name  of  Orleans 
having  been  once  pronounced  suspected  an.l 
dangerous,  could  never  again  be  useful  to  their 
country,  and  would  be  infallibly  persecuted. 
'If  we  can  no  longer  be  useful,'  said  he,  '  and  if 
we  only  give  occasion  of  offense,  can  we  hesitate 
in  expatriating  ourselves?" 

But,  as  we  have  said,  the  duke  decided  to 
remain  at  his  post;  and  his  son,  returning  to 
the  army,  anxiously  awaited  events.  The  Aus- 
trians  speedily  filled  up  their  depleted  ranks 
with  reinforcements,  and  on  the  18th  of  March, 
1793,  were  again  in  battle  array  near  the  vil- 
lage of  Nerwinde.  Another  terrible  battle  en- 
sued, in  which  the  Duke  of  Orleans  again  won 
many  laurels;  but  victory  decided  against  the 
French.  The  army  of  Dumouriez  was  utterly 
routed.  The  Duke  of  Chartres  had  a  horse 
i?hot  from  under  him;  but  he  spent  the  whole 
night  upon  the  field,  struggling  to  rally  the  fu- 
gitives. It  was  attributed  to  his  heroism  that 
the  army  did  not,  on  that  occasion,  experience 
an  irreparable  disaster. 

General  Dumouriez  now  found  himself  in 
the  most-  painful  and  perilous  position.  It  was 
not  safe  for  any  leader  of  the  Republican  ar- 
mies to  allow  himself  to  be  defeated.  The  loss 


.1793.]  THE  EXILE.  63 

Charges  against  Dumouriez. 

of  a  battle  was  considered  equivalent  to  treason. 
A  committee  was  sent  by  the  Assembly  to  spy 
out  his  conduct.  The  Moniteur  of  the  27th  of 
March,  1793,  contains  the  following  report: 

"We  arrived  at  Tournay  on  Tuesday,  the 
26th.  Citizen  Proly  —  who  was  previously 
known  to  General  Dumouriez  —  waited  upon 
him.  He  found  him  at  the  house  of  Madame 
Sillery,  in  company  with  that  lady,  the  Misses 
Egalite',  and  Pamela.  He  was  attended,  also, 
by  Generals  Valence  and  Chartres. 

"Among  other  unbecoming  observations, 
which  he  did  not  hesitate  to  make,  General  Du- 
mouriez said  that  the  Convention  was  the  cause 
of  all  the  misfortunes  of  France;  that  it  was 
composed  of  745  tyrants,  all  regicides ;  that  he 
was  strong  enough  to  bring  them  to  a  sense  of 
propriety;  and  that,  if  they  were  to  call  him 
Caesar,  Cromwell,  or  Monk,  he  was  still  resolved 
to  save  his  country." 

The  publication  of  this  report  rendered  it 
certain  to  Dumouriez  and  his  friends  that  he 
would  immediately  be  arrested  and  conveyed 
to  Paris,  under  circumstances  which  would  ren- 
der condemnation  and  execution  inevitable. 
Tie  had  not  an  hour  to  lose.  He  was  supping 
with  the  Duke  of  Chartres,  anxiously  convers- 


64  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1798. 


The  Plight. 


ing  upon  the  peril  in  which  they  both  were 
involved,  when  a  courier  arrived,  summoning 
him  immediately  to  repair  to  Paris  to  explain 
his  conduct  to  the  Convention.  The  Duke  of 
Chartres  said  sadly  to  his  general:  "  This  order 
is  your  death-warrant."  As  he  said  this,  the 
general  was  opening  another  document,  and  re- 
plied: "Now  it  is  your  turn,  my  young  friend; 
this  letter  incloses  a  similar  invitation  for 
you." 

Thev  both  mounted  their  horses,  and  bidding 

*j  t  O 

adieu  to  unhappy  France,  set  out,  with  a  small 
retinue,  for  the  frontier.  A  detachment  of 
dragoons  was  sent  in  pursuit  of  them.  By  the 
extraordinary  sagacity  and  self-possession  of 
Baudoin,  the  faithful  servant  of  the  prince,  they 
effected  their  escape.  It  is  altogether  probable 
that  Dumouriez  was  intending,  by  the  aid  of 
the  army,  to  overthrow  the  Convention,  and 
re-establish  the  throne  in  favor  of  the  Duke  of 
Chartres.  An  anonymous  French  writer,  com- 
menting upon  these  events,  says: 

"  We  do  not  hesitate  to  place  among  the 
number  of  the  plans  of  Dumouriez  a  project 
which  did  him  honor — that  of  abolishing  the 
republican  system  and  erecting  a  constitutional 
monarchy  in  favor  of  the  Duke  of  Chartres. 


1793.]  THE  EXILE.  65 

Supposed  Flan  of  Dumouriez. 

Many  persons  have  imagined  that  the  Duke  of 
Chartres  was  aware  of  this  design.  It  is  cer- 
tain that  in  the  army,  as  well  as  among  the 
moderates  of  the  interior,  the  prince  would 
have  found  a  crowd  of  adherents.  But  he  was 
too  conscientious  to  usurp  a  crown  which  had 
just  fallen  in  blood — too  good  a  son  to  author- 
ize proceedings  which  would  have  endangered 
the  life  of  his  father;  in  short,  too  enlighten- 
ed, too  prudent,  notwithstanding  his  extreme 
youth,  to  be  instrumental  in  any  ambitious  or 
ill-conceived  scheme  emanating  from  such  a 
man  as  Dumouriez.  However,  whether  the 
Duke  of  Chartres  was  conscious  or  not  of  the 
designs  of  General  Dumouriez,  a  stern  necessity 
rendered  a  union  of  their  fortunes  indispensa- 
ble for  a  time." 

The  fugitives  repaired  first  to  Mons,  the  head- 
quarters of  the  Austrians,  to  obtain  their  pass- 
ports. Prince  Charles  urged  the  duke  to  en- 
ter the  service  of  the  Empire,  and  to  co-operate 
with  foreign  armies  and  the  emigrants  in  re* 
storing  monarchy  to  France.  The  duke  errh 
phatically  declined.  Indeed,  such  an  act  would 
probably  have  brought  his  father's  head,  and 
the  head  of  every  member  of  the  family,  within 
reach  of  the  Convention,  beneath  the  slide  of 
4—5 


Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1793. 


Wanderings  ou  the  Rhiue. 


the  guillotine.  Nothing  now  remained  for  the 
prince  but  exile  and  poverty. 

In  the  month  of  April,  1793,  the  duke,  assum- 
ing the  name  of  Mr.  Corby,  and  the  appearance 
of  an  English  traveller,  accompanied  only  by 
a  servant  and  his  aid-de-camp,  Caesar  Ducrest, 
commenced  travelling  in  Germany.  While  the 
Republicans  assailed  him  from  suspicion  of  his 
secret  hostility  to  Republican  principles,  the  em- 
igrants thoroughly  hated  both  him  and  his  fa- 
ther for  the  countenance  which  they  had  given 
to  the  Revolution.  The  region  was  full  of 
emigrants  who  would  gladly  surrender  him  to 
his  enemies.  It  was  necessary  for  him  to  prac- 
tise the  utmost  caution,  that  he  might  preserve 
his  incognito.  In  the  cities  of  Liege,  Aix-la- 
Chapelle,  and  Cologne,  he  did  not  dare  to  dine 
at  the  table  d'hote,  lest  he  should  be  recognized. 

The  duke  had  reached  Frankfort,  when  he 
read  the  account  in  the  journals  of  the  arrest 
of  his  father  and  brothers.  Lafayette,  laden 
with  irons,  was  pining  in  the  dungeons  of  Ol- 
mutz.  Such  was  the  reward  which  these  pa- 
triots received  for  their  devotion  to  the  cause 
of  popular  liberty. 

Departing  from  Frankfort,  the  duke  pro- 
ceeded to  Basle.  From  an  eminence  in  the 


1793.]  THE  EXILE.  67 

Arrest  of  the  Orleans  family. 

environs  of  the  town  the  tri-color  flag  was  visi- 
ble, floating  in  the  distance  above  the  battle- 
ments of  the  fortress  of  Huninguen.  With 
deep  emotion  the  duke  saluted  the  flag  of  lib- 
erty, for  which  he  had  suffered  so  much,  and 
continued  his  sad  journey.  At  Basle  he  learn- 
ed that  his  sister,  accompanied  by  Madame  de 
Oenlis,  had  taken  refuge  at  Schaffhausen,  in 
Switzerland.  His  mother  and  two  brothers,  as 
well  as  his  father,  had  been  arrested,  and  were 
imprisoned  in  France.  Joining  his  sister  and 
Madame  de  Genlis,  the  little  party  of  exiles 
proceeded,  oppressed  with  anxiety  and  grief,  to 
Zurich.  Here  it  became  necessary  for  them 
to  acquaint  the  magistrates  with  their  real 
names. 

The  emigrant  royalists  who  had  taken  ref- 
uge there  ostentatiously  displayed  their  detesta- 
tion of  the  democratic  prince.  At  the  same 
time,  the  Helvetic  magistrates  trembled  lest 
they  should  incur  the  wrath  of  Eevolutionary 
France  by  affording  a  refuge  to  the  illustrious 
exiles.  The  Moniteur,  of  the  12th  of  June, 
1793,  contained  the  following  notice: 

"The  ci-devant  Duke  of  Chartres  and  his 
suite  are  not  in  Italy,  as  had  been  supposed, 
but  reside  in  a  solitary  house  on  the  margin 


68  .LOUIS  PHILIPPE.  [179& 


Life  In  Switzerland. 


of  Lake  Zug,  in  Switzerland.      They  pass  for 
an  Irish  family." 

It  was  on  the  14th  of  May  that  the  sorrowful 
exiles  took  up  their  residence  upon  the  banks 
of  this  silent  lake.  In  Zurich,  where  they  were 
recognized,  they  had  been  exposed  to  many  in- 
sults. One  evening,  as  they  were  walking  out, 
an  emigrant  cavalier  purposely  caught  his  spur 
in  a  portion  of  the  dress  of  Mademoiselle  d'Or- 
leans,  rudely  tearing  it. 

Soon  they  were  again  discovered  by  some 
emigrants  who  were  passing  through  Zug.  A 
dispatch  from  Berne  reproached  the  authorities 
for  their  imprudence  in  allowing  the  noble 
wanderers  an  asylum.  The  magistrates  called 
upon  the  duke  and  respectfully,  but  with  much 
embarrassment,  entreated  him  to  depart  from 
their  coasts.  It  was  now  evident  that  the  par- 
ty could  no  longer,  with  safety,  reside  together. 
The  duke  succeeded,  through  some  influential 
friends,  in  obtaining  admission  for  his  sister 
into  the  convent  of  Sainte  Claire,  near  Brem 
gar  ten. 

"As  for  you,"  said  M.  de  Montjoie  to  the 
Duke  of  Chartres,  "  there  is  no  alternative  but 
to  wander  in  the  mountains,  not  sojourning 
long  in  any  place,  but  pursuing  this  life  of  sor- 


1793.]  THE  EXILE.  Q 

Letter  from  General  Dnmonriez. 

row  until  the  circumstances  of  your  country 
shall  assume  a  more  favorable  aspect.  If  for- 
tune shall  prove  propitious,  your  wanderings 
will  be  an  Odyssey,  the  details  of  which  will 
one  day  be  collected  with  avidity." 

General  Dumouriez,  who  was  also  wander- 
ing in  obscurity  and  exile,  at  this  time  wrote  to 
General  Montesquieu,  who  was  a  friend  of  the 
Duke  of  Chartres,  and  a  gentleman  possessed 
of  much  influence  and  power  in  Switzerland : 

"Embrace  for  me  our  excellent  young  friend. 
What  you  are  doing  to  serve  him  is  worthy  of 
you.  Let  him  derive  instruction  and  strength 
from  his  adversity.  This  frenzy  will  pass  away, 
and  then  he  will  find  his  place.  Induce  him 
to  make  a  circumstantial  diary  of  his  travels. 
It  will  be  curious  to  see  the  diary  of  a  Bour- 
bon treating  of  other  subjects  than  the  chase, 
women,  and  the  table.  I  am  convinced  that 
this  work,  which  he  will  one  day  produce,  will 
serve  as  a  certificate  for  life,  either  when  he 
shall  have  re-entered  it,  or  to  make  him  return 
to  it." 

Darker  and  darker  grew  the  path  of  the  ex- 
iled prince.  His  funds  became  very  low.  He 
was  separated  from  all  his  friends  except  his 
faithful  servant,  Baudoin,  who  absolutely  re- 


70  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1793. 


Hardships  of  travel. 


fused  to  leave  him.  He  retained  but  one  horse. 
His  servant  chanced  to  be  so  sick  that  he  could 
not  walk.  The  duke  left  Basle  on  foot,  leading 
by  the  hand  the  horse  upon  which  his  humble 
but  faithful  companion  in  exile  was  mounted.* 

Passing  through  Neufchatel,Zellen  Blatt,  and 
Kussnacht,  he  reached  the  ruins  of  Halsburg. 
Here,  in  the  midst  of  silence  and  solitude,  the 
great-grandson  of  the  brother  of  Louis  XIV. 
sought  a  refuge  from  his  countrymen,  who  were 
thirsting  for  his  blood. 

During  one  of  his  adventurous  excursions 
among  the  Alps,  on  foot,  accompanied  only  by 
his  servant,  he  approached  the  hospitiurn  of 
Saint  Gothard.  It  was  on  the  28th  of  August, 
1793.  Having  rung  the  bell,  a  Capuchin  friar 
appeared  at  the  casement  and  inquired,  "What 
do  you  want?"  "I  request,"  replied  the  duke, 
"some  nourishment  for  my  companion  and 
myself."  "My  good  young  men,"  said  the  friar, 
"  we  do  not  admit  foot-passengers  here,  partic- 
ularly of  your  description."  "But,  reverend 
father,"  replied  the  duke,  "we  will  pay  what- 
ever you  demand."  "  No,  no,"  added  the  Cap- 
uchin, pointing  to  a  shed  where  some  mule- 

*  Vie  Anecdotique  de  Louis  Philippe.  Par  MM.  A.  Lau- 
gier  et  Carpentier,  p.  108. 


MWlv 


1793.]  THE  EXILE.  73 

A  college  professor. 

teers  were  partaking  of  Alpine  cheese,  "  that 
little  inn  there  is  good  enough  for  you." 

At  Gordona  the  duke  arid  his  servant  met 
with  a  similar  repulse.  Covered  with  the  dust 
of  travel,  and  with  knapsacks  on  their  backs, 
with  night  and  storm  approaching,  they  found 
the  door  of  a  hostlery  closed  against  them.  It 
was  not  until  after  much  entreaty  that  the  way- 
worn travellers  were  allowed  shelter,  with  a 
bed  of  straw,  in  an  outhouse. 

While  engaged  in  these  wanderings,  the  duke 
received  a  letter  from  M.  de  Montesquieu,  offer- 
ing him  the  situation  of  professor  at  the  college 
of  Reichenau.  This  was  a  chateau  near  the  con- 
fluence of  the  upper  and  lower  Rhine.  He  was 
then  but  twenty  years  of  age.  Assuming  the 
name  of  M.  Chabaud,  he  underwent  a  very  rig- 
id examination,  without  exciting  the  slightest 
suspicion  as  to  his  real  character.  For  eight 
months  he  discharged  the  duties  of  teaching  the 
French  and  English  languages  with  marked 
success,  arid  so  secured  the  respect  of  the  in- 
habitants of  Reichenau  that  they  elected  him 
their  deputy  to  the  Assembly  at  Coire. 

Here  the  tidings  reached  him  of  the  sad 
fate  of  his  father.  Overwhelmed  with  grief, 
and  restless  in  view  of  the  peril  of  other  mem- 


7-1  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1794. 


Political  divisions  in  France. 


bers  of  the  family,  he  resumed  his  wanderings. 
Proceeding  to  Bremgarten,  the  residence  of 
his  influential  friend  M.  de  Montesquieu,  he  re- 
mained with  him,  as  aid-de-camp,  until  some 
time  in  the  year  1794. 

But  it  was  impossible  for  a  man  so  widely 
known  to  remain  long  concealed  in  any  place. 
There  was  still  an  energetic  and  increasingly 
powerful  party  in  France  opposed  to  the  disor- 
ders which  the  Republic  had  introduced,  and 
anxious  to  restore  monarchical  forms.  The 
situation  of  the  sister  of  the  Duke  of  Orkans,  as 
Louis  Philippe  now  became,  on  the  death  of 
his  father,  was  considered  so  unsafe  in  the  con- 
vent of  Bremgarten  that  she  was  removed  to 
Hungary. 

One  day,  as  the  duke  was  sitting  silently, 
lost  in  thought,  in  a  parlor  adjoining  the  one 
occupied  by  his  generous  host,  he  overheard 
some  conversation  which  led  him  to  fear  that 
the  hospitality  which  he  was  receiving  might 
endanger  the  safety  of  his  friend.  He  imme- 
diately resolved  to  withdraw  from  Bremgarten 
and  to  seek  refuge  in  Hamburg.  Here,  finding 
his  position  very  insecure,  he  resolved  to  hide 

himself  in  the  cheerless  climate  of  Northern 
\ 

Europe.      Accustomed   to  the  severest  priva- 


1794.]  THE  EXILE.  75 

The  wilds  of  Scandinavia. 


tions,  he  was  enabled  to  recommence  his  wan- 
derings with  the  slender  funds  at  his  disposal. 
Assuming  the  character  of  a  Swiss  traveller,  he 
made  arrangements  to  disappear  from  Southern 
Europe,  and  seek  refuge  in  the  wilds  of  Scandi- 
navia. He  obtained  passports  from  the  King 
of  Denmark,  which  allowed  him  to  take  with 
him  his  steadfast  friend  Count  Montjoie,  and 
his  faithful  servant  Baudoin,  who  had  shared 
all  the  sufferings  of  his  exile.  A  letter  of 
credit  upon  a  banker  at  Copenhagen  supplied 
his  immediate  pecuniary  wants. 


76  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1794. 


Louis  Philippe  in  Swed«n. 


CHAPTER  III. 

WANDERINGS   IN   THE   OLD   WORLD 

AND  THE  NEW. 


peninsula  of  Scandinavia  can  be  ex- 
J~  plored  at  a  very  slight  expense.  The  ex- 
iled prince,  with  his  companions,  travelled  in 
the  most  unostentatious  manner.  He  felt  quite 
secure  in  his  wanderings,  as  but  few  of  the  emi- 
grants had  penetrated  those  distant  regions. 
From  Copenhagen  he  passed  to  Elsineur,  visit- 
ing all  objects  of  historic  interest.  Crossing 
the  Sound  at  Helsinbourg,  he  entered  the  hos- 
pitable realms  of  Sweden.  After  a  brief  tarry 
at  Gottenburg,  and  ascending  Lake  Wener,  he 
directed  his  steps  towards  Norway,  remaining 
for  a  short  period  at  Friedrichsthal,  where,  in 
1718,  the  half-mad  Charles  XII.,  after  perhaps 
the  most  stormy  life  through  which  a  mortal 
ever  passed,  breathed  his  last. 

Proceeding  to  Christiania,  he  was  received,  as 
an  intelligent  and  affable  traveller,  with  much 
distinction,  though  no  one  suspected  his  rank. 


1794.]  WANDERINGS.  77 


His  incognito. 


Wherever  he  went  the  purity  of  his  character 
impressed  itself  upon  the  community.  M.  Mo- 
nod — subsequently  a  distinguished  pastor  of 
one  of  the  Protestant  churches  in  Paris — was 
then  at  Christiania.  He  fully  appreciated  the 
unusual  virtues  of  his  countryman,  who,  in 
every  word  and  action,  manifested  the  spirit  of 
true  Christianity. 

"  M.  Monod  has  repeatedly  since  been  heard 
to  declare,"  write  A.  Laugier  and  Carpentier, 
"that  the  more  the  virtuous  and  instructive 
life  of  this  traveller  was  examined,  the  more 
exalted  and  exemplary  it  appeared.  What 
must  have  been  his  surprise  when,  subsequent- 
ly, in  his  own  country,  he  recognized  in  the 
young  Frenchman  of  Christiania,  so  gentle  and 
modest,  a  prince  of  the  blood  standing  upon 
the  very  steps  of  the  throne  of  France!" 

For  some  time  the  duke  remained  at  Chris- 
tiania, receiving  many  kind  attentions.  On  one 
occasion  he  dined  with  a  numerous  party  at  a 
banker's  in  the  city.  In  the  evening,  at  the 
close  of  the  entertainment,  as  the  guests  were 
departing,  the  duke  was  startled  and  alarmed 
by  hearing  the  son  of  the  banker,  in  a  loud  and 
somewhat  playful  tone,  call  out,  "  The  carriage 
of  the  Duke  of  Orleans."  For  a  moment  he 


78  Louis  PHILIPPE.  1794. 

Journeying  northward. 

was  much  embarrassed.  But  perceiving  that 
neither  the  young  man  nor  any  of  the  company 
turned  their  eyes  to  him,  he  recovered  his  self- 
possession,  and  calmly  inquired  of  the  young 
man,  "  Why  do  you  call  for  the  carriage  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans?  What  have  you  to  do  with 
him?" 

"  Nothing  at  all,"  he  replied,  with  a  smile ; 
"  but  in  a  journey  which  we,  not  long  ago, 
made  to  Paris,  every  evening,  as  we  were  com- 
ing out  of  the  opera,  we  heard  the  people 
shouting  on  all  sides,  and  with  the  greatest 
eagerness,  'Za  voiture  de  Monseigneur  le  Due 
d*  Orleans  !  les  gens  de  son  Altesse  Royale  T  I  was 
almost  stunned  by  the  noise.  At  the  moment 
it  occurred  to  me  to  imitate  them,  instead  of 
simply  calling  for  the  carriage."* 

Continuing  his  journey  to  the  north,  the 
prince  passed  through  Drontheim  and  Ham- 
ersfeldt,  which  latter  place  was  then  the  most 
northern  town  in  Europe.  Some  years  after, 
when  Louis  Philippe  had  ascended  the  throne 
of  France,  he  sent  a  clock  to  the  church  tower 
in  Hamersfeldt,  in  graceful  recognition  of  his 
hospitable  reception  there  as  a  stranger. 

Continuing  along  the  coast  of  Norway,  he 

*  Vie  Anecdotique  de  Louis  Philippe,  p.  120. 


1795.]  WANDERINGS.  81 

Court  ball  of  King  Gustavus. 

reached  the  Gulf  of  Salten,  and  visited  the 
world-renowned  Maelstrom.  Taking  an  Ice- 
lander, by  the  name  of  Holm,  as  his  guide,  he 
entered  Lapland.  Thus  journeying,  he,  on 
the  24th  of  August,  1795,  reached  North  Cape, 
the  extreme  northern  point  of  Europe,  within 
eighteen  degrees  of  the  North  Pole.  It  is  said 
that  no  Frenchman  had  ever  before  visited 
those  distant  and  frigid  regions.  Here  the 
duke  remained  for  several  weeks,  enjoying  the 
hospitality  of  the  simple-hearted  inhabitants — 
winning  their  confidence  by  his  affability,  and 
deeply  interested  in  studying  their  manners 
and  customs. 

Then,  turning  directly  south,  accompanied 
by  several  of  the  natives,  he  reached  Tornev, 
on  the  extreme  northern  shore  of  the  Gulf  of 
Bothnia.  Thence  he  traversed  the  eastern 
shores  of  the  gulf  for  many  weary  leagues,  to 
Abo,  in  Finland,  where  he  embarked  for  the 
Aland  Islands,  and  reached  Stockholm  the  lat- 
ter part  of  October.  Here,  notwithstanding  all 
his  endeavors  to  preserve  his  incognito,  his  cu- 
riosity to  witness  a  grand  court  ball,  given  in 
honor  of  the  birth-day  of  King  Gustavus  II., 
led  to  his  recognition  by  the  French  envoy  at 
that  court,  though  he  had  adopted  the  precau- 

4—6 


Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1795. 


Despotism  of  the  Directory. 


tion  of  entering  the  highest  gallery  in  the  ball- 
room. 

The  king,  being  informed  of  his  presence, 
immediately  dispatched  a  messenger  to  say 
that  his  majesty  would  be  happy  to  see  the 
duke.  The  kindest  attentions  were  lavished 
upon  him.  From  such  attentions  he  deemed 
it  prudent  to  escape,  and  speedily  resumed  his 
wanderings — searching  out  and  carefully  ex- 
amining all  objects  of  historical  interest.  Re- 
crossing  the  Sound,  he  returned  to  Hamburg, 
by  the  way  of  Copenhagen  and  Eubeck.  The 
Revolution  was  still  running  riot  in  France. 
The  duke,  having  exhausted  the  resources  at 
his  disposal,  found  himself  in  truly  an  embar- 
rassing situation. 

The  Directory  was  at  that  time  ruling  France 
with  despotic  sway.  Ever  trembling  in  fear 
of  a  reaction,  the  Directors  would  gladly  place 
beneath  the  slide  of  the  guillotine  any  one  in 
whose  veins  there  ran  a  drop  of  royal  blood. 
Fearful  of  the  great  influence  of  the  house  of 
Orleans,  even  when  its  property  was  seques- 
tered, and  its  members  were  in  prison  or  in 
exile,  the  greatest  efforts  had  been  made,  by 
means  of  secret  agents,  to  find  out  the  retreat 
of  Louis  Philippe.  At  length,  by  some  means, 


1795.J  WANDERINGS.  83 

The  duke  urged  to  join  the  emigrants. 

they  discovered  him  in  the  small  town  of  Fred- 
erichstadt,  in  Holstein.  His  two  brothers  were 
then  in  prison  in  Marseilles,  in  hourly  danger 
of  being  dragged  to  the  guillotine,  upon  which 
their  father  had  perished. 

The  Directory  proposed  to  the  Duchess  of 
Orleans,  who  was  imprisoned  in  Paris,  and  to 
Louis  Philippe,  now  the  head  of  the  family, 
that  if  the  duke  and  his  brothers  would  embark 
for  America,  leaving  Europe,  the  two  impris- 
oned princes  should  be  restored  to  liberty,  and 
the  sequestrated  property  of  the  family  should 
be  refunded. 

Louis  XVIII. ,  also  an  emigrant,  in  the  bo- 
som of  the  armies  of  Austria,  and  surrounded 
by  the  armed  nobility  of  France,  had  previous- 
ly, through  an  envoy,  urged  Louis  Philippe 
to  join  the  emigrants,  in  their  attempt,  by  the 
aid  of  the  sword  of  foreigners,  to  re-establish 
the  throne  of  France.  But  the  prince  was  not 
willing  to  bear  arms  against  his  native  land. 

The  agents  of  the  Directory,  who  now  ap- 
proached the  prince,  presented  him  a  letter 
from  his  mother.  Her  husband  had  suffered  a 
cruel  death  from  the  executioner.  Her  two 
sons  were  in  hourly  peril  of  the  same  fate. 
Her  eldest  son  and  her  daughter  were  in  exile, 


Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1795. 

Letter  from  the  duchess  to  her  son. 


wandering  in  poverty,  she  knew  not  where. 
She  herself  was  a  captive,  cruelly  separated 
from  all  her  family,  exposed  to  many  insultsf 
and  liable,  at  any  hour,  to  suffer  upon  the  scaf- 
fold the  same  fate  which  her  queen,  Maria  An- 
toinette, and  many  others  of  the  noblest  ladies 
of  France  had  already  endured. 

The  affectionate  heart  of  this  amiable  wom- 
an was  lacerated  with  anguish.  She  wrote  a 
letter  to  her  son,  which  was  intrusted  to  the 
agents  in  search  of  him,  imploring  him,  in  the 
most  affecting  terms,  to  rescue  the  family,  by  a 
voluntary  exile  to  America,  from  its  dreadful 
woes  and  perils.  In  the  letter  she  wrote : 

"  May  the  prospect  of  relieving  the  misfor- 
tunes of  your  distressed  mother,  of  mitigating 
the  sorrows  of  your  family,  and  of  contributing 
to  restore  peace  to  your  unhappy  country,  re- 
ward your  generosity." 

The  duke,  upon  the  reception  of  this  letter, 
decided  at  once  to  embark  for  America.  To 
his  mother  he  wrote:  "When  my  beloved 
mother  shall  have  received  this  letter,  her  com- 
mands will  have  been  executed,  and  I  shall 
have  sailed  for  America.  I  shall  embark  in 
the  first  vessel  destined  for  the  United  States. 
I  no  longer  think  that  happiness  is  lost  to  me 


1796.]  WANDERINGS.  85 


Embarkation  for  America. 


while  I  have  it  in  my  power  to  alleviate  the 
sorrows  of  a  cherished  mother,  whose  situation 
and  sufferings  have  for  a  long  time  rent  my 
heart."* 

On  the  24th  of  September,  1796,  the  Duke 
of  Orleans  embarked  at  Hamburg  in  an  Amer- 
ican vessel,  "The  America,"  then  a  regular 
packet  plying  between  that  port  and  Philadel- 
phia. Still  retaining  his  incognito',  he  repre- 
sented himself  as  a  Dane,  and  obtained  Danish 
passports.  He  paid  thirty-five  guineas  for  his 
passage,  and  took  with  him  his  ever-faithful 
servant  Baudoin,  for  whom  he  paid  seventeen 
and  a  half  guineas.  A  favorable  passage  of 
twenty -seven  days  landed  them  at  Philadel- 
phia, on  the  21st  of  October,  1796. 

We  have  not  space  here  to  describe  the 
cruel  sufferings  of  the  two  younger  brothers  of 
Louis  Philippe  during  their  captivity.  The 
elder  of  the  two,  the  Duke  of  Montpensier,  was 
but  seventeen  years  of  age;  the  younger,  Count 
Beaujolais,  was  but  thirteen.  The  brothers 
were  confined  separately,  in  dark,  fetid  dun- 
geons, and  were  not  allowed  any  communica- 
tion with  each  other.  The  health  of  Beaujo- 
lais soon  began  to  suffer,  and  it  was  evident 

*  A.  Laugier  et  Carpentier,  p.  139 


88  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1796, 


Sufferings  of  the  young  princes. 


that  he  must  die  unless  he  could  have  fresh 
air.  The  Duke  of  Montpensier  writes,  in  hia 
touching  autobiography : 

"My  brother  Beaujolais  was  consequently 
permitted  to  spend  two  or  three  hours  each 
day  in  the  open  air,  and  was  then  remanded 
to  his  dungeon.  His  cell  being  above  mine,  he 
was  obliged  to  pass  my  door  on  his  way  out, 
and  he  never  failed  to  call  out,  'Good -day, 
Montpensier;  how  are  you?'  It  is  impossible 
to  describe  the  effect  his  gentle  voice  had  upon 
me,  or  the  distress  I  felt  when  a  day  passed 
without  my  hearing  it;  for  he  was  sometimes 
actually  forbidden  to  utter  these  words,  and 
was  always  hurried  by  so  quickly  that  he  had 
scarce  time  to  hear  my  answer.  Once,  howev- 
er, that  he  was  permitted  to  remain  until  my 
dinner  was  brought,  he  kept  so  close  to  the 
heels  of  the  basket -bearer  that,  in  spite  of  the 
administrators,  who  tried  to  hold  him  back,  he 
darted  into  my  cell  and  embraced  me.  It  was 
six  weeks  since  I  had  seen  him — six  wretched 
weeks.  The  moment  was  precious,  but  how 
short  1  He  was  torn  from  me  forthwith,  with 
threats  of  being  no  more  allowed  to  go  out 
should  the  same  scene  be  repeated.  I  myself 
was  not  afterwards  permitted,  when  my  cell 


1796.J  WANDERINGS.  87 


Their  destitution. 


door  was  opened,  to  go  near  enough  to  catch 
the  breeze  which  passed  up  the  narrow  stair- 
case." 

The  princes  were  not  allowed  to  see  the 
public  journals,  or  to  receive  from  their  friends 
any  letters  which  had  not  been  previously  ex- 
amined by  their  jailers.  They  were  left  in  en- 
tire ignorance  of  their  father's  < execution  until 
some  time  after  his  head  had  fallen.  When  the 
awful  tidings  were  conveyed  to  them,  both  of 
the  young  princes,  weakened  by  imprisonment 
and  misery,  fainted  away.  The  hatred  with 
which  they  were  pursued  is  evinced  by  the 
epithet  of  wolves'  cubs,  which  was  ever  applied 
to  them  in  the  clubs  of  the  Jacobins.  Eight 
francs  a  day  were  allowed  for  their  support. 
Their  mother  had  sent  to  them,  for  their  im- 
mediate necessities,  twelve  thousand  francs 
($2400);  but  the  magistrates  had  seized  the 
whole  sum.  '  As  the  weary  months  rolled  on, 
there  were  variations  in  the  treatment  of  the 
illustrious  prisoners — it  sometimes  being  more 
and  sometimes  less  brutal,  but  ever  marked 
with  almost  savage  ferocity.  After  the  fall  of 
Robespierre,  a  decree  was  passed — 

"  That  the  imprisoned  members  of  the  Or- 
leans family  should  have  the  outer  walls  of  the 


88  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1796. 


The  attempt  to  escape. 


fort  as  the  limits  of  their  captivity,  the  privilege 
of  ranging  about  within  those  bounds,  and  in 
future  they  were  not  to  be  locked  up  in  their 
celli." 

The  mother  of  the  princes,  the  Duchess  of 
Orleans,  who  had  been  in  close  surveillance  in 
the  palace  of  the  Luxembourg,  in  Paris,  also 
experienced  very  considerable  alleviation  in  the 
severity  of  her  treatment.  From  various  quar- 
ters the  captives  at  length  obtained  funds,  so 
that  their  pecuniary  wants  were  supplied.  On 
the  18th  of  November,  1795,  the  princes  made 
a  desperate  but  unavailing  effort  to  escape. 
The  breaking  of  a  rope  by  which  Montpensier 
was  endeavoring  to  let  himself  down,  outside 
of  the  walls,  precipitated  him  from  a  great 
height  to  the  ground,  very  seriously  breaking 
one  of  his  legs.  He  was  recaptured,  and  suf- 
fered terribly  from  mental  and  bodily  anguish. 
His  brother,  Beaujolais,  having  effected  his 
escape,  learning  of  the  misfortune  which  had 
befallen  his  brother,  returned,  with  true  broth- 
erly love,  to  voluntary  captivity,  that  he  might 
Uo  something  to  cheer  the  sufferer. 

Upon  the  return  of  Beaujolais,  the  com- 
mandant of  the  prison  said,  exultingly,  to  the 
Duke  of  Montpensier,  who  was  writhing  upon 


1796.]  WANDERINGS.  89 


Strong  affection  for  each  other. 


a  bed  of  bodily  suffering  and  of  mental  an- 
guish : 

"  Your  young  brother  is  again  my  prisoner 
in  the  fortress,  and  burns  with  anxiety  to.  see 
you.  You  are  henceforth  to  be  confined  sepa- 
rately, and  will  no  longer  have  an  opportunity 
to  communicate  with  each  other." 

The  two  brothers  were  allowed  one  short  in- 
terview. "Ah,  brother,"  said  Beaujolais,  "I 
fear  we  shall  derive  no  benefit  from  what  I 
have  done,  for  we  are  to  be  confined  separate- 
ly. But  without  you  it  was  impossible  for  me 
to  enjoy  liberty." 

For  forty  days  Montpensier  was  confined  to 
his  bed.  It  was  a  year  and  a  half  before  he 
entirely  recovered  the  use  of  his  brbken  limb. 
Thus  three  years  of  almost  unmitigated  wretch- 
edness passed  away.  There  were  many  mas- 
sacres in  the  prison ;  and  often  it  seemed  that 
miraculous  interposition  alone  had  saved  them 
from  a  bloody  death.  Gradually  the  horrors 
of  the  Reign  of  Terror  seemed  to  subside.  The 
captive  princes  were  allowed  to  occupy  a  room 
together,  and  that  a  comfortably  furnished 
apartment  in  the  fort,  overlooking  the  sea.  It 
was  under  these  circumstances  that  the  mother 
consented  to  their  banishment  to  America,  as 


80  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1796. 


The  release  of  the  captives. 


the  condition  of  their  liberation.  The  Direct- 
ory, however,  would  not  open  their  prison  doors 
until  it  had  received  official  intelligence  of  the 
embarkation  of  Louis  Philippe. 

Immediately  upon  being  satisfied  that  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  had  sailed  from  Hamburg, 
the  authorities  prepared  to  release  the  princes 
from  their  captivity,  and  to  send  them  also  to 
the  New  World.  When  all  things  were  ready, 
General  Willot,  a  humane  man,  who  had  ar- 
rived at  Marseilles  with  extensive  powers,  in- 
formed them  that  the  hour  for  their  release  had 
come. 

"The  prisoners  at  first  could  scarcely  credit 
their  senses.  They  looked  steadfastly  at  each 
other;  then,  throwing  themselves  into  each 
other's  arms,  they  began  to  cry,  laugh,  leap 
about  the  room,  and  for  several  minutes  con- 
tinued to  manifest  a  temporary  derangement." 

It  would  still  be  a  few  days  before  the  ves- 
sel would  sail.  Jacobinical  fury  was  such  in 
Marseilles  that  it  was  not  safe  for  the  princes 
to  appear  in  public,  lest  they  should  be  torn  in 
pieces  by  the  mob.  They  were  therefore  re- 
moved to  the  house  of  the  American  consul, 
Mr.  Cathalan,  who  had  manifested  almost  a 
brotherly  interest  in  their  welfare. 


1796.J  WANDERINGS.  91 


The  contrast. 


"It  is  impossible  to  describe,"  writes  the 
Duke  Montpensier,  in  his  autobiography,  "the 
sensations  I  experienced  in  crossing  the  draw- 
bridge, and  contrasting  the  present  moment 
with  the  frightful  occasions  on  which  I  had 
passed  it  before;  the  first  time,  on  my  entrance 
into  that  dismal  fortress,  where  I  had  been  im- 
mured for  nearly  three  years  of  my  life;  and 
the  second,  on  my  unfortunate  attempt  to  es- 
cape from  it  and  recover  my  liberty.  The 
gratifying  reflection  that  I  now  trod  on  it  for 
the  last  time  could  with  difficulty  impress  it- 
self upon  my  mind ;  and  I  could  not  avoid  fan- 
cying that  the  whole  was  a  sleeping  vision,  the 
illusion  of  which  I  was  every  moment  appre- 
hensive of  seeing  dissipated.  On  our  exit 
from  the  fort,  we  were  received  by  a  strong  de- 
tachment of  grenadiers,  who  conducted  us  to 
the  sloop." 

Being  thus  placed  under  the  protection  of 
the  stars  and  stripes,  the  soldiers  of  the  Di- 
rectory left  them,  and  they  repaired  immedi- 
ately from  the  vessel  to  the  house  of  the  Amer- 
ican consul,  where  several  friends  had  assem- 
bled to  greet  them. 

"Here,"  continues  M.  Montpensier  in  his 
journal,  "we  passed  very  agreeably  the  few 


92  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1796. 


Blending  of  joy  and  anxiety. 


days  that  remained  before  the  departure  of 
the  vessel  for  America.  "We  were,  indeed,  true ' 
birds  of  the  night — only  venturing  out  after 
dusk;  but  our  days  passed  happily  enough. 
Still,  we  were  too  near  that  abode  of  misery,  the 
fort,  which  we  never  ceased  to  think  of  without 
anguish.  And  so  apprehensive  were  we  of  a 
sudden  change  in  the  sentiments  of  the  exist- 
ins;  Government,  or  an  actual  revolution  in  the 
Government  itself,  that  our  anxiety  to  depart 
was  almost  insupportable.  At  last  we  were  in- 
formed that  the  vessel  would  sail  the  following 
day.  The  effect  of  this  joyous  news  was  the 
total  loss  of  our  rest  during  the  night.  Seven 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  5th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1796,  found  us  awake  and  in  transports  of 
delight  at  being  permitted  to  take  wings  and 
fly  to  some  land  of  toleration  and  liberty,  since 
our  own  had  ceased  to  be  such. 

"  The  citizens  of  Marseilles,  being  informed 
of  our  intended  departure,  assembled  in  crowds 
to  see  us  embark.  The  ramparts  of  the  fort 
were  lined,  the  windows  filled.  Almost  all 
congratulated  us  upon  the  recovery  of  our  lib- 
erty. Some  envied  us  our  lot;  while  a  few, 
undoubtedly,  wished  that  the  sea  might  ingulf 
us  where  its  depth  was  greatest,  and  rid  France 


1797.]  WANDERINGS.  93 


The  long  and  stormy  voyage. 


of  two  members  of  the  proscribed  and  hated 
race.  The  anchor  was  raised,  and  the  sails 
were  set  A  favorable  breeze  springing  up, 
we  soon  lost  sight  of  that  country  in  which  we 
had  been  victims  of  a  persecution  so  relentless, 
but  for  whose  prosperity  and'  happiness  we 
never  ceased  to  ofler  up  our  prayers  to  heaven." 

The  voyage  was  long  and  stormy.  It  was 
not  until  after  the  expiration  of  ninety -two 
days  that  the  vessel,'  the  "Jupiter,"  reached 
Philadelphia,  in  February,  1797.  Here,  with 
inexpressible  emotions  of  joy,  they  found  their 
brother  awaiting  their  arrival.  They  took  up 
their  residence  in  a  humble  house  in  Walnut 
Street,  between  Fourth  and  Fifth  streets,  ad- 
joining the  church ;  from  which  they  soon  re- 
moved to  a  house  which  they  rented  from  the 
Spanish  consul,  in  Sixth  Street. 

Philadelphia  was  then  the  seat  of  the  Feder- 
al Government.  The  incognito  of  the  princes 
was  removed,  and  they  were  received  with 
marked  respect  and  attentions.  They  were 
present  when  Washington  delivered  his  Fare- 
well Address  to  Congress,  and  also  witnessed 
the  inauguration  of  President  Adams.  The 
funds  of  the  princes,  though  not  large,  enabled 
them  to  meet  their  frugal  expenses.  In  the 


94  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1797. 


Visit  to  Mount  Vernon. 


early  summer  the  three  princes — accompanied 
by  the  faithful  servant  Baudoin,  who  had  ac- 
companied Louis  Philippe  in  all  his  wander- 
ings—  set  out  on  horseback  to  visit  Baltimore 
and  other  Southern  cities.  The  present  City 
of  Washington  did  not  then  exist.  They, 
however,  visited  Georgetown,  where  they  were 
hospitably  entertained  by  Mr.  Law. 

Passing  through  Alexandria,  they  took  the 
road  to  Mount  Vernon,  where  they  had  been  in- 
vited to  pass  a  few  days  with  perhaps  the  most 
illustrious  man  of  modern  ages.  Washington, 
with  whom  they  had  become  acquainted  in 
Philadelphia,  and  who  had  invited  them  to  his 
house,  received  them  with  the  greatest  kind- 
ness. The  modest,  gentlemanly,  heroic  charac- 
ter of  these  remarkable  young  men  deeply  im- 
pressed him.  He  furnished  them  with  letters 
of  introduction,  and  drew  up  an  itinerary  of 
their  journey,  south  and  west,  directing  their 
attention  to  especial  objects  of  interest. 

In  those  early  days,  and  through  that  wild, 
almost  uncultivated  country,  travelling  was 
attended  with  not  a  little  difficulty  and  with 
some  danger.  Mounted  on  horseback,  with  all 
their  baggage  in  saddle-bags,  the  princes  took 
leave  of  their  honored  host,  and  rode,  by  the 


1797.]  WANDEKINGS.  95 


The  republican  landlord. 


way  of  Leesburg  and  Harper's  Ferry,  to  Win- 
chester, where  they  were  entertained  in  the  cel- 
ebrated inn  of  Mr.  Bush.  An  American  has 
in  the  following  terras  described  the  character 
and  appearance  of  this  celebrated  landlord : 

"I  have  him  in  my  mind's  eye  as  he  was  then, 
portly,  ruddy,  though  advanced  in  life,  with  a 
large,  broad -brimmed  hat,' and  with  his  full 
clothes  of  the  olden  time,  looking  the  very 
patriarch  of  his  establishment.  He  had  two 
houses — one  for  his  family,  and  the  other  for 
his  guests;  and  there  was  no  resting-place  in 
all  that  rich  valley  more  frequented  by  travel- 
lers than  his.  It  was  a  model  of  neatness  and 
comfort,  and  the  excellent  man  who  built  it  up, 
and  who  continued  it  more  from  the  desire  of 
employment  than  from  the  love  of  gain,  seemed 
to  consider  the  relations  subsisting  between  the 
traveller  and  himself  as  a  favor  to  the  former 
rather  than  to  the  latter." 

Mr.  Bush  had  been  in  Manheim,  which  Lou- 
is Philippe  had  recently  visited,  and  he  could 
speak  German.  This  created  quite  an  intimacy 
between  guest  and  host,  and  led  to  a  long  con- 
versation. The  journey  had  been  rough,  the 
exposure  great,  and  the  youngest  brother,  un- 
ace-storied  to  such  fatigue,  was  greatly  e±- 


96  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1797. 


Driven  from  the  inn. 


hausted.  The  Duke  of  Orleans,  who  watched 
over  his  brother  with  parental  tenderness,  out 
of  regard  to  his  prostration,  asked  the  privi- 
lege, so  common  in  Europe,  of  having  their 
dinner  served  to  them  in  their  own  room.  The 
pride  of  the  republican  inn-keeper  was  touched. 

"Such  a  request,"  writes  Gr.  N.  Wright,  "  had 
never  been  heard  in  the  fair  and  fertile  vale  of 
Shenandoah,  or,  at  all  events,  within  the  limits 
of  Bush's  Winchester  Hotel.  It  infringed  his 
rules;  it  wounded  his  professional  pride;  it 
assailed  his  very  honor.  The  recollection  of 
Manheim,  and  the  pleasant  days  he  had  passed 
there — the  agreeable  opportunity  of  living  over 
those  hours  again  in  the  conversation  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans — the  gentle  conduct  of  the 
three  young  strangers — were  all,  in  a  moment 
of  extravagant  folly,  passion,  and  intractable- 
ness,  forgotten,  flung  to  the  winds,  when,  with 
a  scornful  air,  he  addressed  Louis  Philippe: 

"  '  Since  you  are  too  good  to  eat  at  the  same 
table  with  my  guests,  you  are  too  good  to  eat  in 
my  house.  I  desire,  therefore,  that  you  leave 
it  instantly.'  "* 

In  vain  did  the  Duke  of  Orleans  endeavor  to 

*  Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe,  by  Rev.  G.  if.  Wright, 
F.21. 


1797.]  WANDERINGS.  97 


Journeying  in  the  wilderness. 


explain  and  convince  his  irate  host  that  he 
intended  no  disrespect.  The  weary  travellers 
were  compelled  immediately  to  leave,  and  to 
seek  hospitality  elsewhere.  Continuing  their 
journey  through  a  variety  of  adventures,  some 
amusing  and  sotne  painful,  they  passed  through 
Staunton,  Abington,  and  Knoxville,  and  reach- 
ed Nashville,  in  Tennessee.  After  a  short  tarry 
here,  they  continued  their  ride  through  Louis- 
ville, Lexington,  Maysville,  CMlicothe,  Lancas- 
ter, Zanesville,  Wheeling,  to  Pittsburg,  in  Penn- 
sylvania. Their  accommodations  in  these  vast 
wilds  were  often  of  the  humblest  kind.  The 
three  brothers  often  slept  on  the  floor,  wrapped 
in  their  cloaks,  in  some  wretched  hut,  with 
their  feet  towards  the  blazing  fire,  while  their 
landlord  and  his  wife  occupied  the  only  bed  in 
the  only  room. 

At  Pittsburg  the  travellers  rested  for  several 
days.  From  that  place  the  princes  directed 
their  steps  to  Buffalo,  skirting,  for  some  dis- 
tance, the  shores  of  Lake  Erie.  At  Cattarau- 
gus  they  were  the  guests,  for  one  night,  of  the 
Seneca  Indians.  They  felt  some  anxiety  in 
reference  to  their  baggage,  the  loss  of  which,  in 
those  distant  regions,  would  have  been  a  seri 
ous  calamity.  The  chief,  perceiving  their  so- 


98  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1797. 


Indian  hospitality. 


licitude,  said  that  he  would  be  personally  re- 
sponsible for  every  article  which  might  be  com- 
mitted to  his  care,  but  for  nothing  else.  After 
a  little  reflection,  the  duke  placed  in  his  hands 
saddles,  bridles,  blankets,  clothes,  and  money — 
every  thing,  except  a  beautiful  dog,  which  he 
did  not  think  of  including  in  the  inventory. 
All  were  restored  in  the  morning,  excepting 
that  the  dog  was  missing.  "If  the  dog,"  said 
the  chief,  "  had  been  intrusted  to  my  care,  it 
would  have  been  waiting  your  departure." 
With  some  difficulty  the  favorite  animal  was 
reclaimed. 

At  Buffalo  the  travellers  crossed  the  head  of 
the  Niagara  River,  and,  passing  down  the  Ca- 
nadian shore,  visited  the  world-renowned  falls. 
On  their  way,  they  passed  a  night  in  the  huts 
of  the  Chippewa  Indians.  The  following  ex- 
tracts, written  by  the  Duke  of  Montpensier  to 
his  sister,  throw  much  light  upon  the  character 
of  these  excellent  young  men.  It  was  dated 
August  14, 1797 : 

"I  hope  you  have  received  the  letters  which 
we  wrote  to  you  from  Pittsburg  about  two 
months  ago*  We  were  then  in  the  midst  of  a 
long  journey,  which  we  have  terminated  only 
fifteen  days  since.  It  occupied  us  four  months. 


1797.]  WANDEKINGS.  99 

Letter  from  the  Duke  of  Montpensier. 

We  journeyed  during  all  that  time  a  thousand 
leagues,  and  always  upon  the  same  horses,  ex- 
cept the  last  hundred  leagues,  which  we  per- 
formed partly  by  water,  partly  on  foot,  partly 
on  hired  horses,  and  partly  by  stage,  or  the 
public  conveyance. 

"  We  have  seen  many  Indians,  and  we  re- 
mained even  many  days  in  their  country.  They 
are,  in  general,  the  best  people  in  the  world, 
except  when  they  are  intoxicated  or  inflamed 
by  passion.  They  received  us  with  great  kind- 
ness; and  our  being  Frenchmen  contributed 
not  a  little  to  this  reception,  for  they  are  very 
fond  of  our  nation.  The  most  interesting  ob- 
ject we  visited,  after  the  Indian  villages,  was 
certainly  the  Cataract  of  Niagara,  which  I 
wrote  you  word  from  Pittsburg  that  we  were 
going  to  see.  It  is  the  most  astonishing  and 
majestic  spectacle  I  have  ever  witnessed.  I 
have  made  a  sketch  of  it,  from  which  I  intend 
to  make  a  water-color  drawing,  which  our  dear 
little  sister  shall  certainly  see  at  our  beloved 
mother's  home. 

"  To  give  you  an  idea  of  the  agreeable  man- 
ner in  which  they  travel  in  this  country,  I  must 
tell  you,  dear  sister,  that  we  passed  fourteen 
nights  in  the  woods,  devoured  by  all  kinds  of 


100  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1797. 


Hardships  of  travel. 


insects,  often  wet  to  the  bone,  without  being 
able  to  dry  ourselves,  and  our  only  food  being 
pork,  a  little  salt  beef,  and  maize  bread.  In- 
dependently of  this  adventure,  we  were  forty 
or  fifty  nights  in  miserable  huts,  where  we  were 
obliged  to  lie  upon  a  floor  made  of  rough  tim- 
ber, and  to  endure  all  the  taunts  and  murmur- 
ing of  the  inhabitants,  who  often  turned  us  out 
of  doors,  often  refused  us  admission,  and  whose 
hospitality  was  always  defective.  I  should 
never  recommend  a  similar  journey  to  any 
friend  of  mine;  yet  we  are  far  from  repenting 
what  we  have  done,  since  we  have  all  three 
brought  back  excellent  health  and  more  expe- 
rience. 

"Adieu,  beloved  and  cherished  sister — so 
tenderly  loved.  Receive  the  embraces  of  three 
brothers,  whose  thoughts  are  constantly  with 
you." 

As  the  travellers  were  proceeding  from  Buf- 
falo to  Canandaigua,  over  a  country  so  rude 
that  they  suffered  more  than  on  any  other  part 
of  their  journey,  they  met  Mr.  Alexander  Bar- 
ing, afterwards  Lord  Ashburton,  whose  ac- 
quaintance they  had  made  in  Philadelphia. 
Mr.  Baring  was  on  a  tour  to  Niagara,  from 
which  the  princes  were  returning.  His  patience 


1797.]  WANDERINGS.  101 

Return  to  Philadelphia. 

k 

was  quite  exhausted  by  the  hardships  he  was 
enduring  on  the  way ;  and  he  expressed  the 
doubt  whether  the  sight  of  Niagara  could  re- 
pay one  for  such  excessive  toil  and  privation. 
His  experience  must,  indeed,  have  been  differ- 
ent from  that  of  the  modern  tourist,  who  glides 
smoothly  along  in  the  palace-cars.  Arriving 
at  Geneva,  they  took  a  boat  and  sailed  up  Sen- 
eca Lake  to  its  head;  whence  they  crossed 
over  to  Tioga  Point,  on  the  Susquehanna. 
The  last  twenty-five  miles  of  this  trip  they  ac- 
complished on  foot,  each  one  carrying  his  bag- 
gage. Passing  through  the  country,  in  almost 
a  direct  line,  by  the  way  of  Wilkesbarre,  they 
returned  to  Philadelphia. 

Soon  after  their  return  the  yellow -fever 
broke  out  in  Philadelphia  with  great  malig- 
nity, in  July,  1797.  The  princes  had  expend- 
ed on  their  long  journey  all  their  funds,  and 
were  impatiently  awaiting  remittances  from 
Europe.  They  were  thus  unable  to  withdraw 
from  the  pestilence,  from  which  all  who  had 
the  means  precipitately  fled.  It  was  not  un- 
til September  that  their  mother  succeeded  i/i 
transmitting  to  them  a  remittance. 

With  these  fresh  resources  they  commenced  a 
journey  to  the  Eastern  States,  passing  through 


102  Louis   PHILIPPE.          [1797. 


Crossing  the  Alleghanles. 


the  States  of  New  York,  Connecticut,  Ehode 
Island,  and  Massachusetts,  to  Boston  ;  and  it  is 
said  that  they  extended  their  travels  to  Hallo- 
well,  in  the  District  of  Maine,  to  call  upon  the 
Vaughans,  an  illustrious  family  from  England, 
then  residing  there. 

Louisiana  at  that  time  belonged  to  Spain. 
The  exiles  decided  to  cross  the  country  to  the 
Ohio,  descend  the  river  to  New  Orleans,  and 
thence  to  proceed  to  Havana,  on  the  island  of 
Cuba,  by  some  Spanish  vessel.  Returning  to 
Philadelphia,  they  set  out,  on  the  10th  of  De- 
cember, 1797,  to  cross  the  Alleghanies.  Upon 
those  heights  and  gorges  winter  had  already 
set  in,  and  the  cold  was  very  severe.  Just  be- 
fore leaving,  they  learned  that  the  Directory 
had  passed  a  decree  banishing  every  member 
of  the  Bourbon  family  from  France,  including 
their  mother,  who  was  a  Bourbon  only  by  mar- 
riage, and  that  their  mother  had  taken  refuge 
in  Spain.  At  that  time  Spain  was  in  alliance 
with  France,  and  the  British  Government  was 
consequently  at  war  against  it. 

At  Pittsburg  they  found  the  Alleghany  still 
open,  but  the  Monongahela  was  frozen  over. 
They  purchased  a  small  keel-boat,  which  they 
found  lying  upon  the  ice,  and  with  considera- 


1797.]  WANDERINGS.  103- 

Floating  down  the  river. 

ble  difficulty  transported  it  to  a  point  where 
they  could  launch  it  in  the  open  water,  though 
the  stream  was  encumbered  with  vast  masses 
of  floating  ice.  Then  the  three  brothers,  with 
but  three  attendants,  embarked  to  float  down 
the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi,  through  an  almost 
unbroken  wilderness  of  nearly  two  thousand 
miles,  to  New  Orleans.  When  they  arrived  at 
Wheeling,  Virginia,  where  there  was  a  small 
settlement,  they  found  their  way  hedged  up  by 
solid  ice,  which  filled  the  stream  from  shore  to- 
shore.  They  drew  their  boat  upon  the  land, 
to  wait  for  an  opening  through  this  effectual 
barricade.  Louis  Philippe,  with  characteristic 
energy,  impatient  of  delay,  ascended  an  emi- 
nence, and,  carefully  surveying  the  windings  of 
the.  river,  found  that  the  obstruction  of  ice  oc- 
cupied only  about  three  miles,  beyond  which 
the  stream  was  clear. 

Watching  their  opportunity,  they  forced  their 
way  through  some  miles  of  broken  ice,  and  con- 
tinued their  adventurous  voyage.  An  Amer- 
ican military  courier,  less  energetic,  was  detain- 
ed three  weeks  by  the  obstructions  which  the 
French  party  thus  speedily  overcame.  At  Ma- 
rietta, Ohio,  they  found  another  small  village. 
Here  they  landed  to  lay  in  supplies;  and  they 


104  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1798 


Welcome  in  New  Orleans. 


spent  some  time  in  examining  those  Indian 
mounds  so  profusely  scattered  there — interest- 
ing memorials  of  an  extinct  race. 

Continuing  their  voyage  amidst  the  masses 
of  ice  which  still  encumbered  these  northern 
waters,  they  one  day,  through  the  negligence  of 
their  helmsman,  ran  against  a  branch  of  a  tree, 
termed  a  snag,  and  stove  in  their  bows.  The 
boat  was  immediately  unloaded,  drawn  upon 
the  shore,  and  in  twenty-four  hours  was  so  re- 
paired as  to  enable  them  to  continue  their  jour- 
ney. As  they  entered  more  southern  latitudes 
the  floating  ice  disappeared,  and  the  voyage 
became  more  pleasant,  as  they  rapidly  floated 
down  the  tortuous  stream,  by  forests  and  head- 
lands, and  every  variety  of  wild,  sublime,  and 
beautiful  scenery,  until  they  reached  New  Or- 
leans, on  the  17th  of  February,  1798. 

Here  they  met  with  a  very  friendly  welcome, 
not  only  from  the  colonists  generally,  but  from 
the  Spanish  governor,  Don  Gayoso.  They 
were  detained  in  New  Orleans  five  weeks,  await- 
ing the  arrival  of  the  corvette  which  was  en- 
gaged in  conveying  passengers  and  light  freight 
from  that  port  to  Havana.  Impatient  of  the 
delay,  as  the  packet  did  not  arrive,  they  em- 
barked in  an  American  vessel.  England  was 


1798.]  WANDERINGS.  105 

Arrogance  of  the  British  Government. 

then  truly  mistress  of  the  seas.  She  made  and 
executed  her  own  laws,  regardless  of  all  expos- 
tulations from  other  nations. 

As  the  American  vessel  was  crossing  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  she  was  encountered  by  an 
English  frigate,  which,  by  firing  several  guns, 
brought  her  to,  and  immediately  boarded  her. 
The  British  Government  had  adopted  the  very 
extraordinary  principle  that  an  English  ship 
might  stop  a  ship,  of  whatever  nationality,  on 
the  seas,  board  her,  summon  her  passengers 
and  crew  upon  the  deck,  and  impress,  to  serve 
as  British  seamen,  any  of  those  passengers  or 
crew  whom  the  officers  of  the  frigate  might 
pronounce  to  be  British  subjects.  From  their 
decision  there  was  no  appeal. 

"  The  princes,"  says  the  Rev.  G.  N.  Wright, 
"  had  an  opportunity  of  witnessing  one  of  those 
violations  of  international  law  which  not  only 
marked  but  degraded  the  maritime  history  of 
that  period,  by  the  gross  sacrifice  of  public  law 
and  private  liberty.  This  was  the  seizure  and 
impressment  of  men  employed  on  board  neu- 
tral vessels,  and  compelling  them  to  enter  the 
navy  of  a  foreign  country.  The  crew,  being 
mustered  on  the  deck,  Captain  Cochrane  select- 
ed the  ablest  hands  from  among  them — taking 


106  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1798. 

Action  of  the  French  Government 

them  on  a  service  in  which  they  not  only  had 
no  interest,  but  with  which  some  of  them  were 
actually  at  variance,  and  might,  therefore,  be 
compelled  to  fight  against  their  own  country. 

"  It  is  not  the  least  strange,  of  all  the  strange 
events  which  have  occurred  in  those  days  of 
change,  that  a  young  man,  a  passenger  on  board 
an  American  ship,  and  who  was  brought  by  cir- 
cumstances in  contact  with  the  practical  opera- 
tion of  the  iniquitous  claim  which  Great  Brit- 
ain set  up — of  taking  out  of  vessels  sailing 
under  the  American  flag  any  person  they 
pleased — should  have  been  called  upon  subse- 
quently, when  upon  the  throne  of  France,  by 
the  English  Government  to  disavow  the  forci- 
ble abduction  of  a  seaman  from  an  English 
ship." 

Many  years  after  this,  when  Louis  Philippe 
was  king  of  the  French,  a  French  frigate,  from 
a  squadron  blockading  Vera  Cruz,  boarded  an 
English  packet-ship,  and  took  out  of  her  a 
Mexican  pilot  All  England  resounded  with 
a  burst  of  indignation.  Both  Houses  of  Par- 
liament passed  a  decree  that  such  an  act  was  a 
gross  outrage  upon  the  British  flag,  which  de- 
manded immediate  apology  from  the  French 
Government. 


1798.]  WANDERINGS.  107 


The  "right  of  search." 


"The  pilot,"  said  Lord  Lyndhurst,  "had 
come  on  board,  under  the  protection  of  the 
British  flag.  But  in  this  instance  it  was  no 
protection.  A  more  grave  and  serious  out- 
rage was  never  committed  against  our  coun- 
try." 

"Any  •  man,"  said  Lord  Brougham,  "on 
board  a  British  merchantman  is  as  much  un- 
d<er  the  protection  of  the  British  flag  as  if  he 
were  on  board  the  queen's  ship.  The  grave- 
men  of  the  charge  is  that  a  man  has  been  taken 
from  an  English  ship" 

Louis  Philippe,  who  deemed  it  essential  to 
the  stability  of  his  throne  to  maintain  friendly 
relations  with  the  British  Government,  humbly 
disavowed  the  act  in  the  name  of  his  country, 
while  he  considerately  forbore  from  taunting 
the  British  Government  with  its  own  opposite 
and  arbitrary  course,  or  from  congratulating 
it  upon  the  happy  change  of  principles  which 
it  had  so  suddenly  experienced. 

Captain  Cochrane,  learning  that  the  Duke 
of  Orleans,  with  his  brothers,  the  Duke  of 
Montpensier  and  Count  Beaujolais,  were  on 
board  the  small  and  uncomfortable  American 
vessel,  politely  invited  them  to  continue  the 
remainder  of  their  voyage  in  the  enjoyment 


108  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1798. 


Narrow  escape. 


of  the  superior  accommodations  of  his  large 
and  commodious  ship.  The  deck  of  the  frig- 
ate towered  far  above  that  of  the  humble 
American  merchantman.  A  rope  was  low- 
ered to  assist  the  travellers  in  their  ascent. 
The  Duke  of  Orleans  slipped  his  hold  and  fell 
into  the  sea.  Being  an  excellent  swimmer,  he 
swam  around  to  the  stern  of  the  ship,  where  a 
boat  was  lowered,  which  rescued  him  from  his 
unwelcome  bath.  On  the  31st  of  March,  1798, 
the  British  frigate  landed  them  safely  in  Ha- 
vana. 


1799.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  109 

The  antagonistic  parties. 


CHAPTER  IY. 
THE  TOMB  AND  THE  BRIDAL. 


position  of  the  French  princes  was  pe- 
culiarly  embarrassing.  Both  of  the  par- 
ties into  which  all  the  nations  of  Europe 
were  then  divided  suspected  and  feared  them. 
The  Koyalists  could  not  forget  that  the  fathei 
of  the  princes  had  taken  the  title  of  Egalite. 
had  renounced  all  feudal  privileges,  had  voted 
for  the  death  of  the  king,  and  had  placed  him- 
self at  the  head  of  the  democratic  movement 
in  France. 

The  liberal  or  democratic  party  could  not 
forget  that  the  young  princes  were  by  birth 
in  the  highest  ranks  of  the  nobility,  that  by 
blood  relationship  they  were  nearly  connected 
with  the  crown,  that  their  whole  family  had 
been  so  utterly  crushed  by  democratic,  rule 
that  they  could  not  but  hate  that  rule,  and 
that  there  was  a  party  in  France,  sustained  by 
many  of  the  courts  in  Europe,  in  favor  of  re- 
action and  of  re-establishing  the  throne  with 


110  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1799. 


Driven  from  Cuba. 


the  young  Duke  of  Orleans  as  king.  Thus 
the  Orleans  princes  were  alike  suspected  and 
feared  by  both  parties. 

The  government  in  Madrid  was  in  entjre 
sympathy  with  the  aristocratic  party  in  Eu- 
rope. Though  the  Orleans  princes  had  been 
received  in  Cuba,  by  the  Spanish  authorities 
and  leading  citizens,  with  much  attention,  as 
the  victims  of  democratic  fury,  the  govern- 
ment of  Madrid,  remembering  only  the  de- 
mocracy of  Egalite*,  and  fearing  that  the 
princes,  retaining  their  father's  principles, 
might  unfurl  the  dreaded  tri-color  in  Havana, 
sent  an  order  dated  May  21,  1799,  ordering 
the  captain-general  of  the  island  not  to  permit 
any  longer  the  presence  of  the  dukes  of  Or- 
leans and  of  Mpntpensier,  and  of  their  broth- 
er, Count  Beaujolais,  but  to  send  them  imme- 
diately to  New  Orleans,  without  any  regard 
to  thsir  mode  of  subsistence. 

Under  these  circumstances  the  exiles,  with- 
drawing from  Cuba,  succeeded  in  reaching  the 
Bahama  Islands,  which  belonged  to  England, 
and  thence  sailed  for  Halifax.  The  Duke  of 
Kent,  son  of  George  III.,  and  father  of  Queen 
Victoria,  was  then  in  Halifax,  and  received 
them  with  guarded  and  formal  courtesy.  Not 


1800.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  Ill 


Take  refuse  in  England. 


certain  what  might  be  the  feelings  of  the  Brit- 
ish Cabinet  in  reference  to  them,  he  did  not 
feel  authorized  to  grant  them  a  passage  to 
England  on  board  a  British  vessel  of  war. 
They,  therefore,  embarked  in  a  small  vessel  for 
New  York,  and  there  took  passage  in  a  regular 
packet-ship  for  England. 

In  the  first  week  in  February,  1800,  the  ship 
reached  Falrnouth.  Immediately  the  pjinces 
forwarded  a  request  to  George  III.  that  they 
might  be  permitted  to  land  in  England  and 
proceed  to  London.  The  request  was  prompt- 
ly granted,  and  on  the  sixth  of  the  month  they 
reached  the  capital.  To  convince  the  court 
and  the  nobility  of  England  that  they  were 
entirely  weaned  from  all  those  democratic 
tendencies  which  had  brought  such  awful  ruin 
upon  their  house,  they  selected  Twickenham 
as  their  place  of  residence.  It  was  a  beautiful 
and  salubrious  site  in  the  midst  of  the  family 
seats  of  the  English  aristocracy,  and  in  the 
vicinity  of  Windsor  Castle,  the  ancient  and 
world-renowned  palace  of  the  British  kings. 
Here  every  movement  would  be  open  to  the 
eyes  of  the  British  aristocracy,  and  the  mode 
of  life  of  the  princes,  their  associates,  and  their 
manner  of  spending  their  leisure  hours,  would 


112  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1800. 


Courted  by  the  Bourbons. 


all  be  known.  The  spotless  and  amiable  char- 
acter of  these  young  men  rapidly  secured  for 
them  the  confidence  and  esteem 'of  all  their  ac- 
quaintances. 

The  unhappy  son  of  Louis  XVI.,  whom  the 
Legitimists  regarded  as  their  sovereign  under 
the  title  of  Louis  XVII.,  had  perished  of  bru- 
tal treatment  in  his  dungeon,  on  the  6th  of 
June,  1796.*  The  Legitimists  now  recognized 
the  elder  brother  of  Louis  XVI.,  the  Count 
de  Provence,  as  king,  with  the  title  of  Louis 
XVIII.  The  Count  de  Provence,  assuming 
all  the  etiquette  of  royalty,  and  recognized  by 
nearly  all  the  courts  of  Europe  as  the  lawful 
sovereign  of  France,  held  his  court  at  Mittau, 
in  Courland,  surrounded  by  a  crowd  of  emi- 
grant courtiers.  His  only  brother,  Count  d'Ar- 
tois,  who  subsequently  ascended  the  throne  of 
France  as  Charles  X.,  resided  in  London,  punc- 
tiliously maintaining  court  etiquette. 

The  Count  d'Artois,  anxious  to  secure  the 
open  and  cordial  co-operation  of  the  Duke  of 

*  There  have  been  efforts  to  prove  that  the  dauphin  was 
removed  from  prison,  and  another  child  was  substituted  in 
his  place,  who  died  and  was  buried.  Several  claimants  have 
risen,  professing  to  be  the  dauphin.  But  there  is  no  evi- 
dence upon  this  point  sufficient  to  change  the  general  verdict 
of  history. 


4—8 


1800.]         TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  115- 


Reconciliation. 


Orleans  in  behalf  of  the  Royalist  cause,  sent 
him  an  earnest  invitation  to  come  to  London, 
assuring  him  of  an  affectionate  greeting  on  his 
own  part  and  that  of  his  friends.  The  duke 
repaired  to  London,  and  was  received  on  the 
13th  of  February  with  princely  hospitality  by 
the  count  and  other  members  of  the  Bourbon 
family,  at  his  residence  in  Welbeck  Street, 
Cavendish  Square. 

"  The  king,  Louis  XVIIL,"  said  the  Count 
d'Artois,  "  will  be  delighted  to  see  you;  but  it 
will  be  proper  and  necessary  that  you  should 
first  write  to  him."  The  Duke  of  Orleans  did 
so.  In  this  letter  he  must  have  recognized  the 
sovereignty  of  Louis  XVIIL,  a  sovereignty 
founded  on  legitimacy,  for  he  received  a  court- 
eous and  cordial  reply.  Thus  there  seemed  to 
be  a  perfect  reconciliation,  social  and  political, 
between  the  elder  and  younger  branches  of  the 
Bourbon  family. 

General  Dumouriez  had  visited  the  court  of 
the  exiled  monarch,  pledged  to  him  his  hom- 
age, mounted  the  white  cockade,  and,  receiving 
a  commission  in  the  Russian  army,  was  march- 
ing with  the  Allies  against  republican  France, 
All  his  energies  were  consecrated  to  the  resto- 
ration of  the  house  of  Bourbon-Orleans. 


116  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1800 


Embarrassments  of  the  princes. 


Count  d'Artois  left  no  means  untried  to  in- 
duce the  Duke  of  Orleans  and  his  brothers  to 
enlist  under  the  standard  of  emigration.  But 
an  instinctive  reluctance  to  unite  with  foreign- 
ers in  their  war  against  France,  and  the  en- 
treaties of  their  anxious  mother  that  they 
should  not,  in  those  dark  and  perilous  hours, 
commit  themselves  to  the  apparently  hopeless 
cause  of  the  royal  confederacy,  led  the  cautious 
duke  to  adhere  to  the  life  of  privacy  upon 
which  he  had  entered.  But  it  is  scarcely  pos- 
sible but  that,  under  the  circumstances,  both 
he  and  his  brothers  must  have  longed  for  the 
restoration  of  the  Bourbons,  which  would  have 
enabled  them  to  return  to  France  and  to  enter 
upon  the  enjoyment  of  their  exalted  rank  and 
their  vast  estates. 

Still,  the  princes  were  subject  to  many  hu- 
miliations and  annoyances.  The  partisan  press, 
on  both  sides,  assailed  them  with  every  species 
of  calumny.  "The  leading  ministerial  jour- 
nals in  London  declared  openly  that  they  sus- 
pected the  sincerity  of  the  young  Duke  of  Or- 
leans in  his  late  repentance ;  and  that  his  past 
exemplary  conduct  should  not  be  accepted  as 
any  security  against  his  future  treachery." 

But  the  emigrants  in  London  generally,  and 


J800.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  117 


Aristocratic  attentions. 


the  British  Court,  assumed  to  place  full  reliance 
in  the  reconciliation  between  the  Bourbon  and 
the  Orleans  branches  of  the  royal  family.  All 
the  arts  of  flattery  were  employed  to  cement 
this  union,  and  to  lead  the  princes  to  commit 
themselves  irreparably  to  the  royal  cause. 
England,  under  the  ministry  of  William  Pitt, 
was  waging  relentless  warfare  against  revolu- 
tionary France.  On  the  20th  of  February  the 
princes  were  invited  to  meet  England's  most 
renowned  prime  minister,  and  the  most  impla- 
cable foe  of  republican  institutions  in  France, 
at  a  dinner-party,  at  the  town  mansion  of  the 
Count  d'Artois.  Lord  Grenville  gave  a  mag- 
nificent entertainment  in  their  honor,  on  the 
1st  of  March,  1800;  and  the  next  Sunday  the 
exiles  were  presented  to  his  majesty  George 
III.  at  a  levee  held  especially  for  that  pur- 
pose.* 

On  the  13th  of  March  the  Eussian  ambas- 
sador, Count  Woronzo,  following  in  the  train 
of  these  marked  civilities,  invited  them  to  a 
princely  banquet,  which  was  attended  by  all 
the  aristocracy  of  London,  at  his  mansion  in 
Harley  Street;  and  on  the  13th  of  March  his 
Royal  Highness  the  Prince  of  Wales  honored 
*  Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe,  p.  22. 


118  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1800. 


Fashionable  life  in  London. 


them  by  an  invitation  to  Carlton  House  to 
meet  all  the  foreign  ambassadors. 

The  Orleans  princes  were  now  fully  intro- 
duced to  fashionable  life  in  London.  Their 
presence  was  deemed  essential  to  the  complete- 
ness of  any  soire'e  or  banquet.  The  Marchion- 
-ess  of  Salisbury,  then  the  arbitress  in  London 
of  fashion  and  elegance,  invited  the  princes  to 
meet  at  her  house  four  hundred  guests  of  the 
highest  rank  and  distinction,  among  whom  were 
the  Prince  of  Wales.  Then  the  Lady  Mayor- 
ess of  the  city,  Lady  Harvey  Combe,  threw  open 
to  them  Egyptian  Hall  in  as  magnificent  an  en- 
tertainment as  the  times  could  furnish.  Im- 
mediately following  this  brilliant  scene,  the 
Duke  of  Clarence,  subsequently  William  IV., 
invited  them  to  a  dinner-party,  which  in  many 
respects  surpassed  all  which  had  preceded  it 
in  splendor.  All  these  people  who  thus  feted 
them  were  combining  their  energies  to  over- 
throw revolutionary  principles  in  France,  and 
to  reinstate  the  Bourbons. 

At  this  time  the  British  Cabinet  was  prepar- 
ing an  armed  force  for  the  invasion  of  France  by 
a  descent  on  the  southern  coast.  The  report 
was  circulated  that  the  three  Orleans  princes 
were  to  assume  the  white  cockade  and  accom- 


1800.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL. 


Domestic  habits. 


pany  this  military  expedition  against  their  na- 
tive country.  At  the  same  time,  the  Bourbon 
princes  renewed  their  solicitations  to  the  Or- 
leans princes  to  range  themselves,  with  arms 
in  their  hands,  under  the  standard  of  emigra- 
tion. But  the  great  victory  of  Marengo  just 
then  took  place,  which  threw  into  the  power 
cf  the  First  Consul  all  of  upper  Italy,  and  com- 
pelled the  utterly  discomfited  Austrians  to 
withdraw  from  the  British  alliance.  It  was  a 
dark  hour  for  the  Royalist  cause  in  France. 

The  exiled  princes,  who  found  but  little  in, 
the  festivities  of  London  to  alleviate  their  world- 
weariness,  or  to  cheer  them  in  the  peculiar  em- 
barrassments and  trials  of  their  position,  after 
several  minor  adventures,  withdrew  to  their  re- 
treat in  Twickenham,  where  they  endeavored  to- 
seclude  themselves  from  observation  and  from 
all  participation  in  public  affairs. 

The  Duke  of  Orleans  devoted  himself  to  the 
study  of  English  institutions,  visiting  the  prom- 
inent establishments  of  learning  and  of  indus- 
try. The  irreproachable  character  of  this  vir- 
tuous prince,  his  high  intellectual  culture,  dig- 
nified bearing,  amiable  disposition,  and  persist- 
ent refusal  to  involve  himself  in  any  intrigues, 
secured  for  him  general  admiration.  Months 


120  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1807. 

Death  of  the  Duke  of  Montpensier. 


of  tranquillity,  almost  of  happiness,  glided 
away.  But  sorrow  is  the  doom  of  man.  The 
Duke  of  Orleans  had  not  yet  drained  the  cup 
which  was  prepared  for  his  lips. 

The  health  of  the  Duke  of  Montpensier  had 
been  for  some  time  rapidly  failing.  His  con- 
stitution and  that  of  his  brother,  Count  Beau- 
jolais,  had  been  quite  undermined  by  the  hard- 
ships they  had  endured  during  their  imprison- 
ment. All  the  remedies  which  the  best  medi- 
cal advice  could  administer  proved  unavailing. 
It  soon  became  manifest  that  death  was  ap- 
proaching by  slow  but  resistless  strides.  The 
young  duke,  conscious  that  his  end  was  ap- 
proaching, bore  all  his  sufferings  with  the  most 
amiable  and  uncomplaining  resignation,  until, 
on  the  18th  of  May,  1807,  he  fell  asleep. 

The  grief  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  and  of  the 
Count  of  Beaujolais,  in  the  loss  of  so  gentle  and 
tenderly  -  beloved  a  brother,  was  very  great. 
The  funeral  ceremonies  were  attended  in  Lon 
don  with  almost  regal  pomp.  The  Count  d'Ar 
tois  was  present  as  one  of  the  principal  mourn* 
ers  The  gloom  of  twilight  had  begun  to  fall 
upon  the  city  as  the  imposing  procession  ap- 
proached Westminster  Abbey,  to  convey  the 
remains  of  the  long-suffering  prince  to  tLd  dark- 


1807.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  121 


Sickness  of  Count  Beaujolais. 


ness  of  the  tomb.  The  procession  was  led  by 
mutes  bearing  plumes  of  white  feathers.  A 
mourning-carriage,  containing  the  heart  of  the 
deceased  in  an  urn,  was  drawn  by  six  horses, 
decorated  with  the  richest  funereal  caparisons, 
and  led  by  postilions  in  the  mourning-livery 
of  the  house  of  Orleans.  The  hearse  followed, 
preceded  by  a  herald  with  a  coronet  on  a  vel- 
vet cushion. 

The  empty  private  carriage  of  the  deceased 
was  followed  by  many  other  carriages  filled  with 
the  noblesse  of  France,  each  drawn  by  six 
horses.  The  state  equipages  of  the  Prince  of 
Wales  and  of  the  Dukes  of  Sussex  and  York, 
with  postilions  in  state  livery,  closed  the  pro- 
cession. With  such  mournful  pageants  were 
the  mortal  remains  of  the  exile  consigned  to 
the  ancient  mausoleum  of  the  kings  of  England. 

"  Sorrows,"  says  the  poet,  "  come  in  troops." 
Scarcely  were  the  remains  of  the  Duke  of  Mont- 
pensier  placed  in  the  tomb,  ere  his  brother, 
Count  Beaujolais,  began  rapidly  to  fail.  He 
was  urged  to  seek  a  milder  climate  in  Malta  or 
Madeira.  To  the  solicitations  of  his  fond  and 
anxious  brother  he  replied  : 

"  I  feel  that  my  life  is  soon  to  terminate  as 
Montpensier's  did.  What  is  the  use  of  going 


122  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1807. 


Death  of  Count  Beanjolais. 


so  far  to  seek  a  tomb,  and  thus  to  lose  the  con- 
solation of  dying  in  this  retreat  where  we  have 
at  last  found  repose.  Let  us  remain  in  this 
hospitable  land.  Here,  at  least,  I  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  die  in  a  brother's  arms,  and  share  a 
brother's  tomb." 

Still,  amiably  yielding  to  the  anxiety  of  his 
brother,  he  consented,  against  his  own  judg- 
ment, to  accompany  him  to  the  island  of  Malta. 
The  climate  not  agreeing  with  him,  and  his 
strength  rapidly  failing,  the  Duke  of  Orleans 
wrote  to  Ferdinand  IV.,  king  of  Naples,  solicit- 
ing permission  to  visit  the  salubrious  clime 
where  he  had  established  his  court.  Ferdinand 
IV.,  flying  from  the  revolution  beneath  which 
his  throne  had  crumbled,  had  sought  refuge, 
protected  by  the  British  fleet,  in  the  old  Moor- 
ish castle,  called  the  Palazzo  Reale,  near  Paler- 
mo, on  the  island  of  Sicily.  To  the  application 
of  the  duke  to  repair  with  his  dying  brother  to 
those  genial  skies,  a  very  cordial  consent  was 
returned.  But  before  the  reply  arrived,  the 
gentle  spirit  of  Beaujolais  had  taken  its  flight 
to  join  the  spirit  of  Montpensier  in  the  eternal 
world.  With  tearful  eyes  and  an  almost  broken 
heart,  the  bereaved  Duke  of  Orleans  deposited 
the  wasted  remains  of  his  dearly-beloved  broth- 


1807.]        TOMB   AND   BRIDAL  123 


The  Princess  Amelia. 


er  in  tbe  vaults  of  the  church  of  St.  John,  in 
Valetta. 

Having  performed  these  last  sad  rites,  and 
feeling  almost  alone  and  desolate,  in  a  world 
where  he  had  experienced  so  many  sorrows 
and  so  few  joys,  influenced  by  the  friendly  in- 
vitation of  the  Sicilian  Court,  he  embarked  for 
the  island  of  Sicily,  and  reached  Messina  in 
safety.  Proceeding  to  Palermo,  he  was  wel- 
comed with  great  cordiality  to  the  ancient  and 
massive  palace.  The  commanding  figure  of 
the  prince,  his  finely  chiselled  features,  his  dig- 
nified bearing,  united  with  a  frank,  cordial,  un- 
affected address,  his  intelligence  and  accom- 
plishments, all  combined  with  that  nameless 
charm  of  a  pensive  spirit,  created  by  the  great- 
est sufferings  patiently  endured,  secured  for 
him  the  admiration  and  the  warmest  sympa- 
thy of  the  Sicilian  family. 

The  second  daughter  of  the  king,  the  Prin- 
cess Amelia,  was  a  young  lady  whom  all  unite 
in  describing  as  possessed  of  unusual  attrac- 
tions of  person  and  character.  A  strong  at- 
tachment almost  immediately  sprang  up  be- 
tween them.  But  the  Duke  of  Orleans  was  a 
wanderer,  an  exile,  deprived  of  his  patrimo- 
nial estates,  and  living  upon  the  hospitality 


124.  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1807. 


Banner  of  the  Empire. 


of  others  or  upon  those  fragments  which  by 
chance  had  been  saved  from  the  utter  wreck 
of  the  possessions  which  had  descended  to  him 
from  his  ancestors.  Should  he  recover  his 
rank  and  possessions,  it  would  be  a  suitable 
match.  Should  he  fail,  he  would  prove  but  a 
needy  adventurer.  The  proud  queen  was  per- 
plexed whether  to  frown  upon  or  to  encourage 
his  suit. 

In  France  the  anarchy  of  the  Conventions 
and  of  the  Directory  had  given  place  to  the 
Consulate  and  the  Empire.  Under  the  saga- 
cious and  energetic  rule  of  Napoleon,  France 
had  risen  to  dignity  and  power  unequalled  by 
that  of  any  other  nation  in  Europe.  Napo- 
leon had  seized  upon  the  fundamental  princi- 
ple of  the  Revolution,  Equal  Rights  for  all  Men, 
and,  inscribing  that  upon  his  banners,  had  re- 
organized France  with  such  skill  as  to  enable 
her  to  bid  defiance  to  despotic  Europe  in  arms 
against  that  principle.  All  France  seemed 
united  in  this  government  of  republican  prin- 
ciples under  monarchical  forms,  and,  notwith- 
standing the  implacable  hostility  and  persist- 
ent coalition  of  foreign  dynasties,  all  hopes  of 
the  restoration  of  the  Bourbons  seemed  to  have 
vanished.  Ferdinand  of  Naples  and  his  queen, 


1808.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  125 

The  Duke  of  Orleans  iii  the  Sicilian  Court 

who  was  an  Austrian  princess,  and  sister  of 
Maria  Antoinette,  had,  with  great  determina- 
tion, espoused  the  cause  of  the  Allies  against 
France.  A  revolution  in  their  own  kingdom, 
aided  bj  French  arms,  had  driven  them  from 
the  continent  of  Italy  to  the  island  of  Sicily, 
where  they  were  protected  by  an  English 
army  of  twenty  thousand  men,  and  by  the  in- 
vincible fleet  of  Great  Britain,  which  had  en- 
tire command  of  the  seas.. 

The  position  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  in  the 
Sicilian  Court  must  have  been  very  embarrass- 
ing. Ferdinand,  a  weak  man,  and  his  wife,  an 
intriguing,  reckless  woman,  did  every  thing 
they  could  to  entangle  their  illustrious  visitor, 
and  the  suitor  of  their  daughter,  in  the  meshes 
of  the  intrigues  in  which  they  were  ever  in- 
volved. Napoleon  had  shown  a  very  decided 
disposition  to  conciliate  the  Orleans  family, 
and  to  restore  to  them  their  possessions  if  he 
could  have  any  assurance  that  the  vast  influ- 
ence which  they  would  thus  possess  would 
not  be  used  in  the  attempt  to  overthrow  the 
republican  empire  which  France  had  so  cor- 
dially accepted.  The  cautious  duke  felt  that 
it  would  be  the  height  of  folly  to  hurl  him- 
self against  a  power  which  seemed  irresistible. 


126  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1808. 


Spanish  intrigues. 


The  Spanish  Court  had  treacherously,  while 
professing  friendship  for  France,  entered  into 
a  conspiracy  with  the  Allies  to  strike  her  in 
the  back  in  the  anticipated  hour  of  disaster. 
The  Spanish  war  ensued,  into  the  merits  of 
which  we  have  no  space  here  to  enter.  The 
king  and  queen  of  Sicily  hoped  to  place  upon 
the  throne  of  Spain  their  son  Leopold ;  and 
they  urged  the  Duke  of  Orleans  to  go  to  Spain, 
and,  under  the  patronage  of  England,  to  take 
command  of  an  army  for  the  invasion  of  France. 

Influenced  by  these  importunities,  the  duke 
repaired  with  evident  reluctance  to  Gibraltar; 
but  seeing  no  chance  for  Leopold,  he  passed 
over  to  England  to  confer  with  the  British 
Cabinet.*  The  duke  was  a  Frenchman,  and, 
instead  of  being  cordially  received  in  Spain, 
found  himself  in  danger  of  being  mobbed  by 
the  ignorant  and  fanatic  populace.  Lord  Col- 
lingwood  wrote  to  the  British  Government,  in 

*  "  I  have  another  great  puzzle  come  to  me.  The  Queen 
of  Sicily  has  sent  her  son,  Prince  Leopold,  to  Gibraltar  to 
propose  himself  to  be  regent  of  Spain.  It  appears  to  me  to 
be  extreme  want  of  knowledge  of  the  state  of  Spain.  The 
Duke  of  Orleans  came  down  with  him,  and  on  the  13th  of 
August  I  discussed  the  subject  fully  with  his  highness,  much 
to  his  satisfaction,  and  he  went  off  *o  England  with  a  light 
heart." — Collingwootfs  Correspondence. 


1808.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  127 

Wandering  of  the  Duchess  of  Orleans. 

reference  to  this  movement,  in  behalf  of  Prince 
Leopold,  through  the  agency  of  the  Duke  of 
Orleans: 

"Several  of  the  nobles  who  attend  his  royal 
highness  are  French,  and  there  is  no  govern- 
ment here  which  can  give  protection  to  any 
Frenchman  from  the  populace." 

England  did  not  favor  the  idea  of  placing  a 
Sicilian  prince  on  the  throne  of  Spain  by  the 
aid  of  a  French  duke.  Thus  the  enterprise 
was  finally  abandoned.  In  the  then  disturbed 
state  of  Europe,  nearly  all  the  countries  being 
more  or  less  ravaged  by  the  sweep  of  hostile 
armies,  and  there  being  no  regular  postal  com- 
munication, and  no  free  passage  from  one  coun- 
try to  another,  it  was  often  impossible  for  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  to  learn,  for  long  periods  of 
time,  what  was  the  fate  of  his  mother  and  his 
sister,  or  even  where  they  were.  Upon  the 
decree  by  the  Directory  of  the  expulsion  of  all 
the  Bourbons  from  France,  the  Duchess  of  Orleans 
had  retired  to  Figueras,  in  Spain 

In  June,  1808,  one  of  the  tempests  of  war 
reached  that  town,  and  in  a  terrific  bombard- 
ment  of  a  few  hours  it  was  laid  in  ashes.  The 
Duchess  of  Orleans  fled  from  her  home  at  mid- 
night, only  a  few  hours  before  it  was  blown 


128  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1808. 


The  brother  and  sister  united. 


into  the  air  by  a  shower  of  bombs.  Escaping 
from  these  scenes  of  ruin  and  woe,  the  widow- 
ed, almost  childless,  and  friendless  duchess,  but 
still  maintaining  wonderful  fortitude  of  char- 
acter, found  refuge,  after  many  painful  adven 
tures,  in  PortMahon,  on  the  island  of  Minorca. 

The  Duke  of  Orleans,  thwarted  in  his  plans, 
regarded  with  jealousy  by  the  British  Cabinet, 
and  assailed  with  bitterest  contumely  in  both 
aristocratic  and  democratic  journals,  applied  to 
the  English  Secretary  of  State  for  permission 
to  pass  to  Port  Mahon  to  join  his  mother.  But 
the  British  authorities  would  not  consent  to  his 
landing  anywhere  on  the  Spanish  territories. 
They,  however,  at  length  yielded  to  his  impor- 
tunities so  far  as  to  allow  him  to  embark  in  an 
English  frigate  for  the  island  of  Malta,  the  cap- 
tain of  the  frigate  receiving  strict  injunctions 
not  even  to  approach  the  Spanish  coast. 

Proceeding  to  Portsmouth,  where  he  was  to 
embark,  he  there,  to  his  inexpressible  joy,  met 
his  only  and  dearly  beloved  sister,  from  whom 
he  had  so  long  been  separated.  This  virtuous, 
amiable,  but  unhappy  princess,  had  long  been 
striving  to  join  her  wandering  brothers  and 
share  their  fate.  Thus  far  she  had  been  baf- 
fled in  every  endeavor,  and  two  of  them  had 


1809.]        TOMB  AND  BKIDAL.  129 


Their  arrival  at  Malta. 


sadly  gone  down  into  the  grave,  unsustained 
by  those  consolations  which  a  sister's  love  and 
attentions  might  have  afforded  them.  The 
princess  had  finally  succeeded  in  tracing  her 
only  surviving  brother  from  Sicily  to  Gibral- 
tar, and  from  Gibraltar  to  England.  She  had 
thus  providentially  met  him  just  as  he  was  em- 
barking for  Malta. 

The  brother  and  sister  sailed  together,  and 
landed  at  the  port  of  Valetta,  in  Malta,  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1809.  Thence  the  duke  dispatched  a 
private  messenger,  the  Chevalier  de  Brovul,  to 
seek  an  interview  with  his  mother,  to  explain 
to  her  the  impossibility  of  their  going  to  Mi- 
norca, and  to  entreat  her  to  join  them,  if  possi- 
ble, in  Malta. 

"  The  duke's  agent,"  writes  the  English  his- 
torian, Rev.  G.  N.  Wright,  "  was  faithful,  intel- 
ligent, and  active.  But  the  impediments  which, 
were  placed  in  his  path  rendered  his  progress 
in  negotiation  slow,  and  at  length  completely 
obstructed  them." 

The  Spaniards  did  not  love  the  English,  and 
the  English  made  no  efforts  to  disguise  their 
contempt  of  the  Spaniards.  There  was  no  cor- 
dial co-operation  of  action.  There  was  a  strong 
party  in  Spain  in  favor  of  the  regeneration  of 
4—9 


130  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1809. 


Anarchy  In  Spain. 


Jheir  country  by  the  enlightened  and  liberal 
views  which  Joseph  Bonaparte  was  introduc- 
ing. There  was  another  powerful  party  op- 
posed to  France,  and  equally  opposed  to  Brit- 
ish domination. 

"  The  greatest  anarchy,"  says  Mr.  Wright, 
"prevailed  in  every  part  of  the  Peninsula. 
The  Spaniards  were  divided  in  their  allegiance, 
and  a  Bonapartist  party  was  formed  in  the  heart 
of  the  country.  The  national  resources  were 
exhausted;  and  their  co-operation  with  the 
English  wanted  that  cordiality  to  whi^h  her 
noble  efforts  had  entitled  her,  and  which  Span- 
ish policy  ought  to  have  extended  to  them. 

"Brovul,  who  had  been  dispatched  to  con- 
vey a  mere  affectionate  expression  of  regard 
and  love  from  her  children  to  the  venerable 
duchess,  became,  on  his  route,  transformed  into 
a  political  envoy.  It  was  now  distinctly  and 
emphatically  proposed,  by  several  of  the  most 
distinguished  men  of  the  Spanish  national  par- 
ty, that  the  Duke  of  Orleans  should  be  invited 
over  into  Spain,  and  that  he  should  place  him- 
self at  their  head,  and  lead  an  army  of  inva- 
sion into  France. 

"A  secret  agent  was  sent  into  the  southern 
provinces  of  France  to  ascertain  the  public  sei*-' 


1809.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  131 

Unfriendly  conduct  of  the  Queen  of  Sicily. 

timent  there.  He  reported  that  the  people 
looked  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans  as  the  only 
member  of  the  Bourbon  family  who  enjoyed  a 
military  reputation ;  as  a  prince  whose  sword 
had  been  sharpened  by  the  wrongs  of  his  race, 
and  that  they  declared,  in  the  most  enthusias- 
tic manner,  their  readiness  to  follow  him  to 
victory  or  death." 

Misled  by  this  report,  which  proved  to  be  a 
gross  exaggeration,  the  Spanish  Junta  appoint- 
ed the  Duke  of  Orleans  to  a  command  destined 
to  act  on  the  frontiers  of  Catalonia.  But  the 
local  juntas  were  opposed  to  the  movement 
There  was  no  harmony — no  combined  action. 
All  was  confusion,  and  the  duke  made  no  at- 
tempt to  enter  upon  his  command.*  The  Si- 
cilian queen,  Maria  Caroline,  irritated  by  the 
utter  failure  of  the  movement  in  behalf  of  her 
son,  and  disappointed  that  the  Duke  of  Orleans 

*  "Besides,  possibly  England  did  not  think,  and  the  ex- 
iled Bourbons  of  the  elder  branch  would  naturally  have  con- 
curred in  the  sentiment,  that  it  would  be  prudent  or  poli- 
tic to  send  a  gallant  prince  of  Orleans  to  lead  the  Spaniards 
to  victory,  a  prince  who  was  the  great-grandson  of  that  Phi- 
lippe of  Orleans  who,  by  the  lustre  of  his  talents  and  the 
many  attractions  of  his  character,  became  the  idol  of  the 
army  and  the  nation." — Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe, 
by  Rev.  G.  N.  Wright. 


132  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1809. 

Eulogy  upon  the  Duchess  of  Orleans. 

had  so  little  influence  over  the  British  Cab- 
inet, became  quite  alienated  from  her  prospect- 
ive son-in-law,  wrote  very  cold  letters  to  him, 
and  the  failure  of  the  marriage  treaty  was 
openly  spoken  of  in  the  court  and  in  the  jour- 
nals. 

The  duke — whose  attachment  to  the  Prin- 
cess Amelia  was  very  strong — alarmed  by  these 
procedures,  repaired  immediately  to  Palermo 
to  confront  his  enemies  and  to  plead  his  cause. 
He  was  successful.  The  confidence  and  love 
of  Amelia  had  never  abated.  The  presence  of 
the  illustrious  young  man — so  handsome,  so  in- 
telligent, so  spotless  in  character,  so  fascinating 
and  princely  in  his  bearing — soon  dispelled  all 
clouds.  The  queen  could  no  longer  withhold 
her  consent  to  the  nuptials.  With  happiness 
thus  beginning  to  dawn  upon  him,  the  duke 
wrote  as  follows  to  his  mother: 

"Their  majesties  urged  some  objections  to 
the  marriage  of  a  princess  of  their  house  to  a 
wandering  exile  like  myself  Upon  which  I 
stated  that  I  should  apply  to  you  and  induce 
you  to  advocate  my  cause,  and  become  security 
for  my  principles  and  fidelity  to  those  to  whom 
I  promised  allegiance.  'Ah,'  replied  the  queen, 
'  if  you  can  obtain  the  advocacy  of  that  angel, 


1809.]        TOMB  AND  BRIDAL.  133 


The  wedding. 


it  will,  indeed,  be  impossible  to  refuse  you  any 
thing.'  I  should  like,  dear  mother,  to  give 
you  a  faithful  portrait  of  the  princess,  who  was 
destined  to  be  my  bride,  even  before  her  birth. 
But  I  feel  that  I  could  make  but  an  indiffer- 
ent and  very  unworthy  sketch.  She  possesses 
many  amiable  and  elevated  qualities,  which  I 
shall  take  the  liberty  of  summing  up  in  one 
brief  sentence,  by  assuring  you  that  she  seems 
to  be  a  perfect  model  of  my  mother." 

Soon  after  this  the  duchess  embarked  in  an 
English  frigate  for  Palermo,  and  reached  there 
in  safety  on  the  15th  of  October,  1809.  Thus> 
after  long,  long  years  of  separation,  the  surviv- 
ors of  the  exiled  family,  though  still  in  exile, 
were  reunited.  On  the  25th  of  November  the 
nuptial  benediction  was  pronounced  in  the 
beautiful  old  Norman  chapel  of  the  Palazzo 
JReale. 

"  The  most  remarkable  and  curious  fact  con- 
nected with  the  origin  and  structure  of  the  Ca- 
pella  Reale  is,  that  to  the  completion  of  this 
most  perfect  illustration  of  the  art  of  ecclesiastic 
building  three  nations  have  contributed — the 
Greeks,  Saracens,  and  Normans.  And  by  this 
fortuitous  association  the  chaste  style  of  the 
ancients,  the  cold  manner  of  th&  Northerns, 


13-1  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1809. 


Character  of  (he  bride. 


and  the  luxurious  fashion  of  the  East  are  ah 
here  blended  in  perfect  harmony."* 

General  Cass,  the  American  minister  to 
France,  who,  thirty  years  after  these  events, 
wrote  from  the  palace  of  the  Tuileries,  where 
Louis  Philippe  and  his  amiable  queen  were 
then  enthroned,  says: 

"  The  queen  was  the  daughter  of  that  King 
of  Naples  who  was  driven  from  his  Continental 
dominions  by  the  French,  and  took  refuge, 
with  his  family  and  court,  in  Sicily.  Here  the 
king,  Louis  Philippe,  then  poor  and  in  exile, 
married  her;  and  the  match  is  understood  to 
have  been  one  of  affection  on  both  sides.  The 
thirtieth  anniversary  of  their  union  has  just 
expired,  and  they  are  at  the  summit  of  human 
power,  with  a  most  interesting  family  of  seven 
children,  and,  as  is  known  to  every  body,  with 
the  warmest  attachment  to  each  other.  In  the 
bitterness  of  French  political  discussions  no 
whisper  of  calumny  has  ever  been  heard  against 
the  queen.  And  one  who  could  pass  through 
this  ordeal  has  nothing  more  to  dread  from 
human  investigation.  A  kinder,  more  anxious 
mother  is  nowhere  to  be  found.  She  is  a  sin- 
cere believer  in  the  Christian  religion,  and  de- 

*  Wright's  Shores  and  Islands  of  the  Mediterranean. 


1809.]        TOMB  AND  BKIDAL.  135 


Her  benevolence. 


vout  in  the  performance  of  its  duties.  Her 
charity  is  known  throughout  the  country,  and 
appeals  for  the  distressed  are  never  made  to  her 
in  vain.  In  the  performance  of  her  regal  du- 
ties, while  her  bearing  is  what  the  nature  of 
her  position  requires,  there  is  a  kind  of  affa- 
bility which  seems  continually  seeking  to  put 
all  around  her  as  much  at  their  ease  as  possi- 
ble."* 

*  France  in  1840.     By  an  American — [General  Cassj. 


136  Louis  PHILIPPE. 


The  Sicilian  Court. 


CHAPTER  V. 
THE  RESTORATION. 

THE  court  of  Ferdinand  IV.,  one  of  the 
most  worthless  and  corrupt  of  the  old  feu- 
dal dynasties,  was  maintained  in  Sicily  by  the 
army,  the  navy,  and  the  purse  of  England. 
His  Sicilian  majesty  received  from  trie  British 
Government  an  annual  subsidy  of  four  hun- 
dred thousand  pounds  sterling  ($2,000,000),  to 
support  the  dignity  of  his  throne,  and  to  pay 
for  the  troops  which  Sicily  furnished  England 
for  her  interminable  warfare  against  the  French 
Empire.  The  Duke  of  Orleans  severely  con- 
demned the  errors  and  follies  continually  de- 
veloped by  the  reigning  dynasty,  and  yet  he 
found  himself  utterly  powerless  to  remedy 
them.  The  queen  was  the  ruling  power  at  the 
court,  and  her  prejudiced  and  impassioned  na- 
ture was  impervious  to  any  appeals  of  reason. 
She  knew  very  well  that  England  did  not  loan 
her  protection  and  lavish  her  gold  upon  the 
Sicilian  Court  from  any  love  for  that  court,  but 


1814.]         THE  KESTORATION.  137 


Retirement  of  the  duke. 


simply  from  dread  and  hatred  of  the  repub- 
lican principles  advocated  by  Napoleon.  She, 
therefore,  often  treated  the  English  with  the  ut- 
most disdain.  And  yet,  sustained  by  twenty 
thousand  British  troops  upon  the  island,  she 
trampled  upon  all  popular  rights,  consigning, 
by  arbitrary  arrests,  to  the  dungeon  or  to  exile 
all  who  opposed  her  sway. 

"Against  these  violations  of  law,  infringe- 
ments of  liberty,  and  manifestations  of  absolu- 
tism, the  Sicilians  rose  with  becoming  firmness. 
The  Duke  of  Orleans  had  long  foreseen  the 
approaching  hurricane,  the  gathering  wrath 
of  an'  injured  people ;  but  finding  his  remon- 
strances vain,  his  principles  of  government  al- 
most directly  contrary  to  those  of  his  august 
mother-in-law,  he  retired  from  a  court  where 
there  was  no  room  for  a  virtuous  counsellor, 
and,  with  his  wife  and  her  infant  prince,  lived 
in  retirement  a  few  miles  from  Palermo."* 

The  duke  was  living  tranquilly,  and  perhaps 
not  unhappily,  in  this  retirement,  abstaining 
from  all  participation  in  the  intrigues  of  the 
Sicilian  Court,  when,  on  the  morning  of  the 
23d  of  April,  1814,  an  English  frigate,  with 
every  banner  floating  triumphantly  in  the 
*  Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe. 


138  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1814. 


The  Restoration. 


breeze,  entered  the  harbor  of  Palermo.  It 
brought  the  astounding  intelligence  of  the  fall 
of  Napoleon  and  the  restoration  of  the  Bour- 
bons. The  exciting  tidings  soon  reached  the 
ears  of  the  duke.  He  hurried  to  Palermo,  and 
drove  directly  to  the  palace  of  the  English  am- 
bassador, where  he  was  greeted  with  the  words: 

"  I  congratulate  you  upon  the  downfall  of 
Napoleon,  and  on  the  restoration  of  the  illus- 
trious race,  of  which  you  yourself  are  a  mem- 
ber, to  the  throne  of  their  fathers." 

For  a  moment  the  duke  was  speechless  with 
astonishment,  and  then  declared  the  story  to 
be  quite  incredible.  He  however  was  soon  con- 
vinced that  it  was  even  so,  by  reading  a  copy 
of  the  Moniteur,  which  gave  a  detailed  account 
of  the  whole  event.  All  the  shipping  and 
all  the  forts  of  Palermo  were  now  resounding 
with  the  thunders  of  exultation.  The  Duke 
of  Orleans  had  fought  under  the  tri-color  flag. 
Mingled  emotions  agitated  him.  He  saw  that 
national  banner  which  had  waved  so  proudly 
over  many  a  field  of  victory  now  trampled  in 
the  dust  beneath  the  feet  of  foreign  squadrons, 
and  their  allied  armies  exultingly  encamped 
within  the  parks  of  his  native  city.  The  res- 
toration of  the  Bourbons  had  been  accomplished 


1814.]         THE   RESTORATION.  139 


The  return  to  Paris. 


at  the  expense  of  the  humiliation  of  his  coun- 

try. 

The  next  day,  the  commander  of  the  ship 
which  had  brought  the  intelligence  called  at 
the  residence  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  and  said 
to  him, 

"I  am  directed  by  Admiral  Lord  William 
Bentinck,  who  is  now  at  Genoa,  to  wait  upon 
your  royal  highness,  and  ascertain  if  you  wish 
to  return  to  France.  If  so,  my  vessel  and  my 
personal  services  are  at  your  command.  If 
you  prefer  to  remain  at  Naples,  I  hope  you 
may  enjoy  that  lasting  happiness  to  which,  by 
your  eventful  and  virtuous  life,  you  are  so  emi- 
nently entitled."* 

The  duke  pondered  the  fact  that  he  was  in- 
vited to  return  to  Paris,  not  by  an  envoy  from 
the  restored  king,  but  by  an  officer  in  the  Brit- 
ish navy.  Still  the  prince  resolved  immediate- 
ly to  repair  to  Paris.  Taking  an  affectionate 
farewell  of  his  wife  and  their  infant  son,  he 
embarked  on  board  the  English  frigate,  accom- 
panied by  a  single  servant,  and  on  the  eight- 
eenth of  May,  1814,  entered  his  native  city, 

*  During  much  of  his  exile,  Louis  XVIII.  had  occupied 
the  chateau  of  Hartwell,  in  the  county  of  Buckingham,  about 
fifty  miles  from  London. 


140  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [181-4. 


Arrival  iu  Paris. 


from  which  he  had  so  long  been  an  exile. 
Louis  XVIII.  was  already  there,  having  re- 
turned to  Paris  in  the  rear  of  the  bayonets  and 
the  batteries  of  foreign  troops.  It  was  his  maj- 
esty's expressed  wish  that  the  Palais  Royal, 
the  hereditary  mansion  of  the  Orleans  family, 
should  be  repaired  and  restored  to  its  former 
owners.  During  the  republican  and  imperial 
rule,  its  numerous  and  spacious  apartments 
had  been  appropriated  to  private  residences. 
The  duke,  upon  arriving  in  Paris,  availed  him- 
self of  temporary  accommodations  in  furnished 
apartments  in  the  Rue  Grange  Bateliere.  One 
of  his  first  steps  was  to  repair  incognito  to  the 
home  of  his  fathers.  The  Swiss  servants  who 
guarded  the  palace  still  wore  the  imperial  liv- 
ery. With  some  reluctance  they  yielded  to 
the  importunities  of  the  stranger,  and  allowed 
him  to  penetrate  the  interior  apartments. 

"As  he  approached  the  grand  staircase,  the 
recollections  of  his  boyhood,  the  lustre  of  his 
ancient  race,  the  agonies  of  mind  he  had  en- 
dured since  he  last  beheld  that  spot,  and  grati- 
tude to  that  Providence  which  had  spared  him 
amidst  such  universal  ruin,  completely  over- 
whelmed him,  and,  falling  prostrate  on  the  tes- 
selated  pavement,  he  imprinted  a  thousand 


1814.]         THE  EESTORATION.  141 

Reception  by  the  Bourbons. 

kisses  on  the  cold  white  marble,  while  tears 
gushing  from  his  eyes  indicated,  while  they  re- 
lieved, the  emotions  with  which  he  contended."* 

The  next  day  the  duke  was  presented  to  his 
majesty,  Louis  XVIIL,  at  the  Tuileries.  As 
he  approached  the  royal  presence,  the  king  ad- 
vanced towards  him,  and  said, 

"Your  highness  was  a  lieutenant-general  in 
the  service  of  your  country  twenty-five  years 
ago,  and  you  are  still  the  same." 

The  assumption  adopted  by  Louis  XVIIL 
that  there  had  been  no  interruption  of  the 
Bourbon  reign,  and  the  attempt  to  blot  from 
history  the  twenty-five  most  eventful  years  in 
the  annals  of  France,  deservedly  excited  both 
contempt  and  ridicule.  An  American  writer 
of  distinction  says: 

"  The  unconquerable  prejudices  of  the  Bour- 
bons, and  their  studied  ignorance  of  the  feel- 
ings of  the  country  they  were  called  to  govern 
after  an  exile  of  twenty-five  years,  were  the 
prognostics  as  well  as  the  cause  of  their  ulti- 
mate fall. 

"Their  imperial  predecessor  had  indeed  left 
them  a  difficult  task.  His  career  was  so  bril- 
liant that  it  may  well  have  dazzled  his  coun- 
*  Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe. 


142  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [181-1. 


Testimony  of  an  American. 


trjmen,  and  left  them  unfitted  for  a  milder 
domination.  He  was,  indeed,  a  wonderful 
man ;  and  I  have  been  more  powerfully  im- 
pressed than  ever,  since  my  arrival  in  France, 
with  the  prodigious  force  of  his  character, 
and  with  the  gigantic  scope  as  well  as  the  vast 
variety  of  his  plans. 

"  I  am  satisfied  that  circumstances  have  not 
been  favorable  to  a  just  appreciation  of  the 
whole  character  of  Napoleon  in  the  United 
States.  While  he  was  at  the  head  of  the  na- 
tion, we  surveyed  him  very  much  through  the 
English  journals,  and  we  imbibed  all  the  prej- 
udices which  a  long  and  bitter  war  had  engen- 
dered against  him  in  England.  To  be  sure,  his 
military  renown  could  not  be  called  in  ques- 
tion; but  of  his  civic  talents  a  comparatively 
humble  estimate  was  formed.  I  have  since 
learned  to  correct  this  appreciation."* 

It  was  the  undisguised  effort  of  Louis  XVIIL, 
now  restored  by  foreign  armies  to  the  throne, 
to  annihilate  the  memory  of  all  that  France 
had  achieved  at  home  and  abroad,  under  the 
administration  of  Napoleon.  The  tri-color  was 
exchanged  for  the  white  banner  of  the  Bour- 
bons, and  the  eagles  were  replaced  by  the  Gal- 

*  General  Cass. 


18U.]         THE  RESTORATION.  143 


Pride  of  the  Bonrbons. 


lie  cock.  All  the  insignia  of  imperialism  were 
carefully  obliterated.  The  evidence  seems  quite 
conclusive  that  the  king,  notwithstanding  his 
apparent  reconciliation  with  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans, still  regarded  him  with  much  suspicion, 
and  would  have  been  very  willing  that  he 
should  have  continued  in  exile.  Indeed,  the 
king  seemed  disposed  to  revive  old  family  feuds, 
that  he  might  keep  the  duke  estranged,  as  far 
as  possible,  from  the  sympathies  of  the  Legiti- 
mist party. 

The  Duchess  of  Orleans  was  of  royal  blood, 
the  daughter  of  a  king.  But  the  father  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  had  worn  only  a  ducal,  not 
a  royal  crown.  The  king,  consequently,  gave 
orders  that,  whenever  the  Duke  of  Orleans  and 
his  suite  should  appear  at  court,  both  of  the 
folding-doors  of  the  grand  entrance  should  be 
thrown  open  for  the  duchess,  while  but  one 
should  be  opened  for  her  husband. 

In  July  the  duke  embarked  in  a  French 
ship  of  the  line,  with  Baron  Athalin  and 
Count  Sainte  Alde'gonde  as  his  aids,  to  trans- 
fer  his  family  from  Palermo  to  Paris.  Early 
in  August  they  were  luxuriously  domiciled  in 
his  magnificent  ancestral  home.  Madame  de 
Genlis,  now  venerable  in  years,  and  having 


144  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1815. 


Madame  de  Genlis. 


ever  retained  the  reverence  and  affection  of 
her  distinguished  pupils,  hastened  to  join  the 
ducal  family  in  the  saloons  of  the  Palais  Royal. 

"  This  resolution,"  she  writes,  "  procured 
me  the  inexpressible  happiness  of  once  more 
seeing  my  pupils,  Mademoiselle  and  the  Duke 
of  Orleans.  In  our  first  interview  they  both 
displayed  to  me  all  the  affection,  all  the  emo- 
tion and  delight  which  I  myself  experienced. 
Alas !  how  deeply  I  felt,  at  this  meeting,  the 
absence  of  the  beloved  pupils,  the  Duke  of 
Montpensier  and  his  brother  Count  Beaujolais, 
who  both  died  in  exile." 

The  winter  passed  rapidly  away,  and  on  the 
5th  of  March,  1815,  to  the  dismay  of  the  Bour- 
bons, and  of  all  the  crowned  heads  of  Europe, 
the  tidings  reached  Paris  that  Napoleon  nad 
left  Elba,  landed  at  Cannes,  and,  accompanied 
by  ever-increasing  thousands  of  enthusiastic 
supporters,  was  on  the  triumphal  march  io- 
wards  the  metropolis.  The  most  terrible  proc- 
lamations were  hurled  against  him  by  Louis 
XVIII..  but  all  in  vain'.  All  opposition 
melted  before  the  popular  emperor.  The 
path  from  Cannes  to  Paris  was  over  six  hun- 
dred miles  in  length,  through  the  heart  of 
France.  But  the  Bourbons,  with  the  armies 


1815.]        THE  EESTORATION.  145 


Triumphal  advance  of  Napoleon. 


of  France  nominally  at  their  disposal,  and  the 
sympathies  of  all  the  feudal  dynasties  in  Eu- 
rope enlisted  in  their  behalf,  could  summon  no 
force  sufficient  to  arrest  the  progress  of  that  one 
unarmed  man.  The  Duke  of  Orleans  has- 
tened to  the  presence  of  his  majesty,  and,  ad- 
dressing the  trembling  monarch,  said : 

"  Sire,  as  for  me,  I  am  prepared  to  share 
both  your  bad  and  good  fortune.  Although 
one  of  your  royal  race,  I  am  your  subject, 
servant,  and  soldier.  Do  with  me  as  your 
majesty  pleases,  for  the  honor  and  peace  of 
our  country." 

The  king  sent  him  to  Lyons;  to  co-operate 
with  the  king's  brother,  the  Count  d'Artois, 
subsequently  Charles  X.,  in  the  endeavor  to 
retard,  by  every  means  in  their  power,  the 
advance  of  the  ex-emperor  upon  Paris.  A 
council  of  war  was  immediately  held,  the 
Count  d'Artois  presiding.  Marshal  Macdonald 
proved  to  the  satisfaction  of  all  present  that 
it  would  be  impossible  to  prevent  the  occu- 
pation of  Lyons  by  Napoleon.  Thence  his 
march  to  Paris  would  be  unimpeded. 

All  was  consternation  in  the  Bourbon 
Court.  Louis  Philippe  broke  up  his  estab- 
lishment, and  dispatched  his  wife  and  family, 

4—10 


146  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1815. 


Flight  of  Louis  XVIII. 


by  the  most  expeditious  route,  to  England. 
The  armies  of  France  were  concentrated  as 
rapidly  as  possible  on  the  borders  of  the 
Ehine,  where  the  allied  troops  could  hurry  to 
their  support.  The  Duke  of  Orleans  was  in- 
vested with  the  command  of  this  army  of  the 
north.  Louis  XVIII.,  surrounded  by  a  email 
body  of  Guards,  entered  his  carriage  and  fled 
precipitately  across  the  Rhine,  to  place  him- 
self again  under  the  protection  of  the  allied 
sovereigns  who  were  convened  in  Congress  at 
Vienna. 

The  accompanying  cut  will  give  the  reader 
a  vivid  idea  of  the  departure.  The  king  was 
enormously  fat.  His  figure,  with  long  body 
and  very  short  legs,  was  peculiar  almost  to  de- 
formity. He  entered  his  carriage  for  his  flight, 
with  apparently  none  to  regret  his  departure, 
at  one  o'clock,  on  the  morning  of  the  19th  of 
March.  The  evening  of  the  next  day,  the  20th, 
the  emperor  arrived,  and,  surrounded  by  the 
acclamations  of  thousands,  was  borne,  in  a 
scene  of  indescribable  enthusiasm,  on  the 
shoulders  of  the  people  into  the  vacant  palace. 

"The  moment  that  the  carriage  stopped," 
says  Alison,  "  he  was  seized  by  those  next  the 
door,  borne  aloft  in  their  arms,  amidst  deafen- 


1815.]        THE  RESTORATION.  149 

Signal  triumph  of  Napoleon. 

ing  cheers,  through  a  dense  and  brilliant  crowd 
of  epaulets,  hurried  literally  above  the  heads 
of  the  throng  up  the  great  staircase  into  the 
saloon  of  reception,  where  a  splendid  array  of 
the  ladies  of  the  imperial  court,  adorned  with 
a  profusion  of  violet  bouquets,  half  concealed 
in  the  richest  laces,  received  him  with  trans- 
ports, and  imprinted  fervent  kisses  on  his 
cheeks,  his  hands,  and  even  his  dress.  Never 
was  such  a  scene  witnessed  in  history." 

This  triumphal  journey  of  Napoleon  for 
nearly  seven  hundred  miles,  through  the  heart 
of  France,  alone  and  unaided  invading  a  king- 
dom of  thirty  millions  of  inhabitants,  vanquish- 
ing all  the  armies  of  the  Bourbons,  and  regain- 
ing the  throne  without  drawing  a  sword  or 
firing  a  musket,  presents  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable instances  on  record  of  the  power  of 
one  mighty  mind  over  human  hearts.  Bound- 
less enthusiasm,  from  citizens  and  soldiers, 
greeted  him  every  step  of  his  way.  A  more 
emphatic  vote  in  favor  of  the  Empire  could 
not  have  been  given.  A  more  legitimate  title 
to  the  throne  no  monarch  ever  enjoyed.  And 
yet  the  Allies,  in  renewing  the  war  against 
him,  had  the  unblushing  effrontery  to  proclaim 
that  they  were  contending  for  the  liberties  of  the 


150  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1815. 


Retirement  of  the  Bourbons. 


people  against  the  tyranny  of  an  usurper!  In 
view  of  such  achievements  of  Napoleon,  we 
do  not  wonder  that  Lamartine,  his  unrelenting 
political  foe,  should  say  that,  as  a  man,  "  Napo- 
leon was  the  greatest  of  the  creations  of  God." 
"The  emperor,  notwithstanding  the  Bour- 
bons had  set  a  price  upon  his  head,  issued 
special  orders  that  they  should  not  be  molest- 
ed; that  they  should  be  permitted  to  retire 
without  injury  or  insult.  He  could,  with  per- 
fect ease,  have  taken  them  prisoners,  and  then, 
in  possession  of  their  persons,  could  have  com- 
pelled the  Allies  to  reasonable  terms.  But 
his  extraordinary  magnanimity  prevented  him 
from  pursuing  such  a  course.  Louis  XVIIL, 
accompanied  by  a  funeral  procession  of  car- 
riages containing  members  of  his  family,  his 
ministers,  and  returned  emigrants,  trembling 
md  in  dismay,  retired  to  Lille,  on  the  northern 
frontiers  of  France.  The  inhabitants  of  the 
departments  through  which  he  passed  gazed 
silently  and  compassionately  upon  the  infirm 
old  man,  and  uttered  no  word  of  reproach ; 
but  as  soon  as  the  cortege  had  passed,  the  tri- 
colored  banner  was  run  up  on  steeple  and  tur- 
ret, and  the  air  resounded  with  shouts  of  Vive 
TEmpereur"* 

*  Abbott's  Life  of  Napoleon,  vol.  ii.,  p.  465. 


1815.]        THE  KESTORATION.  153 


Efforts  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


Immediately  Napoleon  dispatched  by  tele- 
graph the  following  order  throughout  France : 
"The  emperor  having  entered  Paris  at  the 
head  of  the  very  troops  that  were  sent  to  op- 
pose him,  the  civil  and  military  authorities  are 
hereby  cautioned  against  obeying  any  other 
than  the  imperial  orders,  and  are  enjoined,  un- 
der the  last  penalty  of  military  law,  to  hoist 
the  tri-colored  flag  upon  the  receipt  of  this  in- 
telligence." 

Eegardless  of  this  order,  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans, in  the  north  of  France,  made  very  great 
efforts,  by  visiting  all  the  posts,  to  inspire  the 
soldiers  to  fidelity  to  the  Bourbons,  and  to 
rouse  them  to  oppose  the  emperor.  "Find- 
ing," says  a  writer,  who  was  in  sympathy  with 
his  efforts,  "  his  great  exertions  as  fruitless  as 
the  assaults  of  the  winds  upon  the  mountain's 
rocky  ridge,  he  at  length  abandoned  the  proj- 
ect. The  conduct  of  Louis  XYIIL  was  but 
little  calculated  to  inspire  his  subjects  with  re- 
spect, or  to  restore  their  fading  fidelity.  Hav- 
ing reached  Lille  on  the  22d,  on  the  next  day 
he  fled,  with  indecent  haste,  towards  the  front- 
ier, not  remaining  long  enough,  even  if  his  fac- 
ulties had  been  sufficiently  collected  tQ  do  so, 
to  give  final  or  further  instructions  to  the  lieu- 


154  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1815. 

Dejection  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 

tenant-general.  Terror  of  Napoleon  occupied 
his  every  thought ;  and  the  wings  of  the  wind 
were  unequal  to  keep  pace  with  the  eagerness 
of  his  mind  to  escape  from  the  iron  grasp  of 
the  mortal  enemy  of  his  race.  Louis  Philippe 
had  lent  the  protection  and  encouragement  of 
companionship  to  his  majesty  to  a  distance  of 
five  miles  from  Lille ;  yet  the  timid  monarch 
never  delivered  to  him  any  instructions  or 
command  as  to  the  operations  of  the  army,  nor 
confessed  his  future  project."* 

The  Duke  of  Orleans  was  annoyed  and  ir- 
ritated by  the  pusillanimity  displayed  by  the 
king,  and  by  the  mortifying  reserve  with 
which  he  himself  was  treated.  He  called  upon 
the  commandants  of  the  different  towns,  and 
informed  them  that  the  king  had  left  France 
without  giving  him  any  authority  to  act.  He 
then  issued  a  public  proclamation,  in  which  he 
resigned  his  entire  command  to  Marshal  Mor- 
tier.  In  this  he  said : 

"  I  go  to  bury  myself  in  retirement  and  ob- 
livion. The  king  being  no  longer  in  France, 
I  ca«i  not  transmit  you  any  further  orders  in 
his  name;  and  it  only  remains  for  me  to  re- 
lease you  from  the  observation  of  all  the  or- 

*  Life  and  Times  of  Louis  Philippe,  by  Rev.  G.  N.  Wright. 


1815.]         THE  RESTORATION.  155 


Calumnies  of  the  journals. 


ders  which  I  have  alreacly  transmitted  to  you, 
and  to  recommend  you  to  do  every  thing  that 
your  excellent  judgment  and  pure  patriotism 
will  suggest  to  you.  Farewell,  my  dear  mar- 
shal. My  heart  is  oppressed  in  writing  this 
word." 

On  the  22d  Louis  Philippe  broke  up  his  es- 
tablishment at  head-quarters,  and  set  out  to  re- 
join his  family  in  England.  He  had  but  lit- 
tle hope  then  of  ever  again  revisiting  France. 
His  sufferings  must  indeed  have  been  agoniz- 
ing in  finding  all  his  newly-born  hopes  vanish- 
ing,  and  in  again  entering  upon  the  weary  life 
of  an  exile.  Arriving  in  England,  he  directed 
his  steps  to  the  beautiful  and  sequestered  re- 
treat of  Twickenham.  It  was  a  hallowed  spot, 
endeared  to  him  by  the  memory  of  days  of 
tranquillity  and  of  a  pensive  joy,  and  by  scenes 
of  heart-rending  anguish,  as  he  had  there  seen 
his  two  beloved  brothers  sinking  sadly  into 
the  grave. 

"The  triumph  of  legitimacy,"  says  Mr. 
Wright,  "  which  dethroned  Napoleon,"  in- 
spired its  followers  in  foreign  lands  with  new 
zeal,  fresh  devotion,  and  increased  prospects 
of  ascendency.  In  England  the  most  servile 
of  that  faction  had  the  malignity  to  invent  and 


156  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1815. 

Return  of  the  Bourbons  to  Pane. 

publish,  by  means  of  the  dishonest  portion  of 
the  daily  press,  the  grossest  and  most  painful 
calumnies  against  the  Duke  of  Orleans.  The 
Bourbon  faction,  expert  at  calumny  and  in- 
trigue, employed  every  means  their  art  sup- 
plied to  accomplish  their  darling  object,  which 
was  the  still  further  separation  of  the  elder 
from  the  younger  branch  of  the  royal  family. 
It  was  now  that  the  persecutors  of  the  Duke 
of  Orleans  hit  upon  the  scheme  of  defaming 
him  by  forgery.  They  forged  various  protes- 
tations and  confessions  of  faith,  which  they 
subscribed  with  the  name  of  Louis  Philippe, 
and  procured  their  publication  in  English 
journals ;  "  the  tendency  of  which  was  to  place 
him  in  a  false  position  with  respect  to  the  eld- 
er branch  of  his  family." 

The  hundred  days  of  Napoleon's  second 
reign  passed  rapidly  away.  The  defeat  at 
Waterloo  restored  Louis  XVIII.  to  the  throne, 
with  a  better  prospect  of  its  permanent  pos- 
session. Napoleon,  in  the  long  agony  at  St. 
Helena,  expiated  the  crime  of  raising  the  ban- 
ner of  Equal  Rights  far  All  Men,  in  opposition 
to  the  exclusive  privileges  of  kings  and  nobles. 
Louis  XVIII.,  escorted  by  nearly  a  million  of 
foreign  troops,  returned  to  the  Tuileries.  All 


1815.]        THE  EESTORATION.  157 


The  duke's  possessions  restored. 


the  members  of  the  royal  family  followed  from 
their  wide  dispersion.  Louis  Philippe  joined 
the  crowd,  and  again  presented  himself  in  the 
royal  saloons.  The  king  suspected  him,  and 
in  the  presence  of  a  full  court  received  him 
with  marked  coldness.  Conscious  of  his  own 
unpopularity,  and  of  the  general  impression 
that  the  Duke  of  Orleans  was  tinctured  with 
liberal  sentiments,  the  king  was  ever  appre- 
hensive that  a  faction  might  arise  in  favor  of 
placing  the  Duke  of  Orleans  upon  the  throne. 

The  shrewd,  intriguing  Fouchd,  duke  of 
Otranto,  in  a  letter  written  to  the  Duke  of 
Wellington  at  this  time,  says : 

"  The  personal  qualities  of  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans, the  remembrance  of  Jemappes,  the  pos- 
sibility of  making  a  treaty  which  would  con- 
ciliate all  interests,  the  name  of  Bourbon, 
which  might  serve  outside,  but  not  be  pro- 
nounced within — all  these  motives,  and  many 
others  that  might  be  mentioned,  present  in  this 
last  choice  a  perspective  of  repose  and  secu- 
rity even  to  those  who  could  not  perceive  in 
them  an  omen  of  happiness." 

Though  the  king  declined  the  assistance  of 
the  Duke  of  Orleans  in  reorganizing  his  gov- 
ernment, he  restored  to  him  his  vast  ancestral 


158  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1815. 

The  duke  returns  to  the  Palais  Royal. 

possessions.  Recrossing  the  Channel,  the  duke 
conducted  his  family  from  Twickenham  back 
to  the  sumptuous  saloons  of  the  Palais  Royal 
A  royal  ordinance  commanded  all  the  princes 
of  the  blood  royal  to  take  seats  in  the  Chamber 
of  Peers.  Under  this  decree  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans became  a  member  of  that  august  and  in- 
fluential body. 

And  now  commenced  the  reign  of  what  was 
called  the  Terreur  Blanche,  or  White  Terror, 
consisting'  of  a  series  of  proscriptions  and 
bloody  executions,  under  the  white  flag  of  the 
Bourbons,  which  shocked  the  spirit  of  human- 
ity. Unrelenting  revenge  was  dominant.  Mar- 
shal Ney,  General  Labedoyere,  and  many  oth- 
ers of  the  noblest  men  in  France,  were  ere 
long  put  to  death  or  driven  into  exile.  The 
friends  of  Louis  XVIII.  in  the  Chamber  of 
Peers  urged  on  these  merciless  executions.  A 
resolution  was  introduced  into  that  body  and 
strongly  supported,  calling  for  the  exempla- 
ry chastisement  of  all  political  delinquents. 
There  were  a  few  who  indignantly  repudiated 
this  revengeful  spirit. 

The  Duke  of  Orleans  ascended  the  tribune. 
His  person  was  but  little  known  by  the  ma- 
jority of  those  present  As  the  son  of  Ega- 


1815.]         THE  RESTORATION.  159 

Humanity  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 

lite*,  and  as  one  suspected  of  liberal  principles, 
he  was  hated  by  the  returned  emigrants  of 
the  old  Bourbon  party.  As  he  took  his  stand 
in  the  tribune  there  was  breathless  silence 
throughout  the  whole  assembly.  Every  eye 
was  fixed  upon  him.  His  majestic  figure,  his 
fine  countenance,  intellectual,  thoughtful,  upon 
which  there  remained  the  traces  of  many  suf- 
ferings, his  calm,  dignified,  self-possessed  bear- 
ing, and  his  exalted  rank  as  a  prince  of  the 
royal  line,  created  profound  sentiments  of  re- 
spect. For  a  moment  he  looked  upon  the  as- 
sembly in  silence.  Then  in  slow,  solemn,  de- 
cisive terms  he  remonstrated  against  the  ma- 
levolent spirit  which  was  being  developed. 

"  I  propose,"  said  he,  "  the  total  suppression 
of  the  obnoxious  clause.  Let  us  leave  to  his 
majesty's  parental  care  the  charge  of  maintain- 
ing public  order.  Let  us  not  urge  a  revenge- 
ful spirit  which  malevolence  may  convert  into 
a  weapon  for  disturbing  the  peace  of  the  na- 
tion. Our  position  as  judges  of  appeal  over 
those  very  individuals  to  whom  you  recom- 
mend the  exercise  of  severity,  rather  than  of 
mercy,  should  impose  absolute  silence  upon 
us  in  respect  to  them." 

These  just  and  noble  sentiments  the  majori- 


160  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1815. 

The  duke  persecuted  by  the  court 

ty  applauded,  and  the  vote  was  carried  in  be- 
half of  humanity.  But  the  king  and  his  cote- 
rie were  very  angry,  and  assailed  the  duke  in 
the  most  violent  terms  of  condemnation.  The 
king,  in  a  petty  spirit  of  revenge,  issued  a  de- 
cree, recalling  the  ordinance  that  all  the  princes 
of  the  blood  royal  were  to  sit  in  the  Chamber 
of  Peers,  and  declaring  that  none  in  future 
were  to  appear  there  but  by  special  authority 
of  the  king,  delivered  at  each  particular  sitting. 

This  was  intended  as  a  deliberate  insult  to 
the  Duke  of  Orleans,  to  exclude  him  from  the 
Chamber  of  Peers,  and  to  degrade  him  in  the 
eyes  of  the  partisans  of  the  king.  This  pitiful 
spirit  of  persecution  greatly  increased  the  gen- 
eral popularity  of  the  duke,  which  led  to  a  re- 
doubled clamor  of  calumny  on  the  part  of  his 
opponents.  He  was  accused  of  seeking  to  ral- 
ly around  him  the  malcontents,  of  courting  the 
favor  of  the  populace,  and  of  trying  to  organ- 
ize  an  Orleans  faction  5n  his  interests. 

The  clamor  was  so  loud  and  so  annoying, 
and  the  duke  found  himself  so  entirely  ex- 
cluded from  the  sympathies  of  the  court  and 
of  the  dominant  nobles,  that,  to  escape  from 
the  storm,  he  imposed  upon  himself  voluntary 
exile,  and  again,  forsaking  France,  sought  ref- 


MARSHAL   KEY. 


1815.]         THE  RESTORATION.  163 


Execution  of  Marshal  Ney. 


uge  with  his  family  in  his  English  retreat  at 
Twickenham. 

The  annoying  report  was  circulated,  that  the 
duke  was  banished  by  an  indignant  decree  of 
the  king,  which,  out  of  regard  to  the  duke's 
feelings,  he  had  not  made  public.  Louis  Phi- 
lippe was  fully  conscious  of  the  great  unpopu- 
larity of  the  elder  branch  of  the  Bourbons,  arid 
of  the  feeble  tenure  by  which  they  held  their 
power,  sustained  against  the  popular  will  by 
the  bayonets  of  the  Allies. 

The  duke  had  hardly  arrived  at  Twicken- 
ham ere  he  received  an  affecting  letter  from 
the  wife  of  Marshal  Ney,  entreating  him  to  in- 
tercede with  the  Prince  Regent  of  England 
for  the  life  of  her  noble  husband,  then  in  pris- 
on awaiting  the  almost  certain  doom  of  death. 
The  duke  did  plead  for  him  in  the  most  ear- 
nest terms;  but  his  efforts  were  unavailing. 
Thus  one  of  the  most  illustrious  of  the  sons  of 
France,  "  the  bravest  of  the  brave,"  was  led  out 
into  the  garden  of  the  Luxembourg  and  shot 
down  like  a  dog.  Marshal  Ney  had  fought  a 
hundred  battles  for  France,  not  one  against  her. 
His  crime  was,  that,  having  accepted  command 
under  the  Bourbons,  he  had  been  guilty  of 
treason  in  deserting  his  standard,  and  had  wel- 


i6-±  jjouis  PHILIPPE.  [1817. 


Again  an  exile. 


corned  back  the  emperor,  whom  he  had  served 
in  so  many  battles,  and  whom  he  so  dearly 
loved.  By  the  capitulation  of  Paris  it  was 
expressly  declared  that  "no  person  should  be 
molested  for  his  political  opinions  or  conduct 
during  the  Hundred  Days ;"  but  the  Allies  paid 
no  regard  to  their  plighted  faith.* 

One  important  object  of  Louis  Philippe,  in 
withdrawing  from  France,  was  to  avoid  the 
embarrassment  of  being  brought  forward  in 
opposition  to  the  king,  and  in  being  made  the 
head  of  the  Liberal  party.  This  refusal  to  iden- 
tify himself  with  any  democratic  movement 
rendered  him  very  popular  with  the  English 
Court,  a  popularity  increased  by  England's  ad- 
oration of  exalted  rank  and  princely  fortune. 
The  duke  was  received,  in  palace  and  castle, 
with  splendid  hospitality,  which  he  frequently 
eclipsed  in  the  brilliant  entertainments  which 
he  in  return  gave  at  Twickenham. 

*  "  England  entailed  a  lasting  disgrace  upon  her  name  by 
not  prohibiting  the  execution  of  a  vengeance  so  long  delayed ; 
by  not  claiming  as  her  victims  those  brave  men  whom  the 
glory  of  her  arms  had  unfortunately  placed  at  the  mercy  of 
the  Bourbons,  and  by  allowing  the  French  king  to  put  those 
fine  fellows  to  death  on  the  scaffold,  whose  military  prowess 
was  honorable  to  France." — Life  and  Times  of  Louis 
lippe. 


1817.]        THE  RESTORATION.  165 

Testimony  of  Madame  de  Oenlis. 

The  duke  now  devoted  himself,  in  his  vol- 
untary exile,  to  the  administration  of  his  sump- 
tuous household,  and  to  the  rearing  of  his  rap- 
idly increasing  family,  abstaining  entirely  from 
all  participation  in  the  politics  and  intrigues 
of  Paris.  His  mansion  was  ever  thronged  with 
distinguished  guests,  and  multitudes,  ruined  by 
the  storms  which  had  swept  over  their  several 
lands,  frequented  his  saloons,  seeking  pecunia- 
ry aid.  The  applicants  were  so  numerous  and 
the  claims  so  complicated,  that  the  duke  found 
it  necessary  to  establish  a  bureau  of  charity 
to  examine  these  claims  and  to  disburse  his 
bounty. 

In  1817  the  duke  returned  to  France,  and 
divided  his  time  between  the  Palais  Eoyal 
and  his  magnificent  rural  retreat  at  Neuilly. 
Wealth,  rank,  and  hospitality  will  always  draw 
a  crowd.  The  duke  lived,  as  it  were,  in  a 
small  but  brilliant  court  of  his  own.  He  sel- 
dom appeared  in  the  court  of  Louis  XVIIL, 
and  took  no  part  in  -public  affairs.  Much  of 
his  time  was  devoted  to  superintending  the  ed- 
ucation of  his  very  interesting  group  of  chil- 
dren. Madame  de  Genlis  gives  the  following 
description  of  this  ducal  family : 

UI  continued  to  pay  my  respects  to  Made- 


166  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1817. 

The  princes  in  the  national  lyceums. 

moiselle  d'Orleans,  who  is  still  as  kind  and 
affectionate  towards  me  as  ever.  I  saw  the 
young  Prince  de  Joinville,  who  was  only  two 
years  old,  but  who  spoke  as  distinctly  as  a 
child  of  six  or  seven.  He  was  also  as  polite 
as  he  was  handsome  and  intelligent.  In  fact, 
the  whole  family  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  is 
truly  the  most  interesting  I  ever  knew.  The 
members  of  it  are  charming  by  their  personal 
attractions,  their  natural  qualities  and  educa- 
tion, and  by  the  reciprocal  attachment  of  par- 
ents and  children."* 

But  again  the  duke  incurred  the  displeasure 
of  the  court.  Anxious  that  his  sons  should 
derive  the  benefit  of  free  intercourse  with  the 
world,  he  decided  to  place  them,  for  the  com- 
pletion of  their  education,  in  the  national  ly 
ceums.  Here  they  were  on  a  level  with  other 
boys,  and  could  only  secure  distinction  by  mer- 
it. The  court,  however,  and  the  old  nobility, 
deemed  it  gross  contamination  for  princes  of 
the  blood  royal  to  associate  with  the  children 
of  citizens,  and  they  regarded  the  measure  as 
merely  another  attempt  on  the  part  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  to  secure  the  favor  of  the 
populace.  Even  the  king  himself  remonstra- 

*  Autobiography  of  Madame  de  Genlis. 


1817.]         THE  RESTORATION.  167 

Democratic  tendencies  of  the  duke. 

ted  with  the  duke  upon  the  impropriety  of  his 
course.  But  the  duke  reminded  his  majesty 
that  their  illustrious  ancestor,  Henry  IV.,  had 
been  thus  brought  up,  having  been  sent  by 
his  mother  to  the  public  school  in  Berne. 

One  of  the  Paris  journals,  commenting  upon 
this  republican  measure  of  the  duke,  wrote: 
"Already  has  the  Duke  of  Chartres,  the  eldest 
son  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  entered  a  college 
in  Paris  ;  a  natural  thing,  it  may  be  said,  pro- 
vided he  is  only  old  enough  to  comprehend- 
the  course  of  study.  Princes  have  not  hither- 
to been  seen  in  public  colleges  since  princes 
and  colleges  were  in  existence ;  and  this  noble 
youth  is  the  first  who  has  been  educated  in 
this  manner. 

"  What  would  that  great  king  Louis  the  Su- 
perb say — he  who  could  not  tolerate  the  idea 
even  of  his  illegitimate  children  being  con* 
founded  with  the  nobility  of  the  kingdom,  such 
was  his  sensitiveness  in  view  of  the  degrada- 
tion of  the  blood  royal — if  he  beheld  his  grand- 
nephew,  without  page  or  Jesuit,  at  a  public 
school,  mixing  with  the  common  herd  of  the 
human  race,  and  disputing  with  them  for 
prizes,  sometimes  conquered,  sometimes  con- 
queror !" 


168  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1816. 


Marriage  of  the  Duke  de  Berri. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   DEATH  OF   Louis   XVIII.,  AND 
EEIGN  OF  CHARLES  X. 

WE  have  alluded  to  the  Duke  de  Berri,  the 
second  son  of  Count  d'Artois.     As  he 
.  became  the  father  of  Count  de  Chambord,  the 
present  Legitimist  claimant  of  the  throne  of 
France,  his  career  calls  for  more  minute  men- 
tion. 

On  the  28th  of  March,  1816,  the  French  peo- 
ple were  informed,  by  an  announcement  to  both 
of  the  Chambers,  that  the  young  Duke  de  Berri 
was  about  to  enter  into  a  matrimonial  alliance 
with  Caroline  Mary,  eldest  daughter  of  the  heir 
to  the  crown  of  Naples.  Caroline  Mary  was 
the  niece  of  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  being  the 
child  of  her  brother.  The  Chambers,  in  token 
of  their  satisfaction,  voted  the  Duke  de  Berri  a 
nuptial  gift  amounting  to  three  hundred  thou* 
sand  dollars.  The  duke  manifested  his  gener- 
ous character,  and  won  great  popularity,  by 
accepting  the  gift  only  upon  condition  that  he 


1816.]    DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     169 


Family  of  the  Duke  de  BerrL 


might  be  allowed  to  distribute  the  sum  among 
the  poor  in  the  provinces,  who  were  then  suf- 
fering severely  from  famine. 

The  marriage  proved  a  happy  one,  until 
death  sundered  the  tie.  Caroline  Mary,  who 
thus  became  the  Duchess  de  Berri,  was  of 
sylph-like  grace  of  figure,  beautiful  in  features, 
and  by  her  affable  manners  and  unaffected 
amiability  won  all  hearts.  Four  years  glided 
swiftly  away.  Two  children  were  born,  a  son 
and  a  daughter ;  both  died  in  infancy.  A 
third  child  proved  to  be  a  daughter.  As,  by 
an  ancient  law  of  the  realm,  daughters  were 
not  eligible  to  the  throne  of  France,  there  was 
great  anxiety  felt  throughout  the  kingdom. 
Unless  a  prince  were  born,  there  would  be  a 
failure  in  the  direct  line  of  succession,  and 
civil  war  might  be  the  result.  On  the  13th  of 
February,  the  duke  and  duchess  attended  the 
opera.  The  duchess  was  expecting  soon  again 
to  be  a  mother.  By  the  sudden  opening  of  a 
door,  she  was  unexpectedly  struck  in  the  side 
with  violence,  which  caused  her  some  alarm, 
and  she  expressed  the  wish  to  return  home. 

The  duke  led  her  to  her  carriage.  She  took 
her  seat  in  it,  saying  to  him  with  a  smile, 
"Adieu;  we  shall  soon  meet  again."  As  the 


170  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1820. 

Assassination  of  the  Duke  de  Berri. 

duke  was  returning  to  the  opera,  an  assassin, 
by  the  name  of  Louvel,  who  had  been  lying 
in  wait  for  him,  sprang  from  the  darkness  of 
a  projecting  wall,  and  seizing  the  duke  by  the 
shoulder  with  one  hand,  with  the  other  plunged 
a  dagger  to  the  hilt  in  his  side.  It  was  the 
deed  of  an  instant,  and  the  assassin,  in  the 
darkness,  fled,  leaving  the  dagger  in  the  side 
of  the  victim. 

The  footman  was  just  closing  the  door  of 
the  carriage  of  the  duchess  when  she  heard  her 
husband  cry  out,  "I  am  assassinated!  I  am 
dead !  I  have  the  poniard !  That  man  has 
killed  me!"  With  a  shriek,  the  duchess  sprang 
from  her  carriage  and  clasped  her  husband  in 
her  arms,  as  the  gushing  blood  followed  the 
dagger  which  he  drew  from  the  wound. 

"  I  am  dead  !"  exclaimed  the  duke.  "  Send 
for  a  priest.  Come,  dearest,  let  me  die  in  your 
arms !" 

The  dying  man  was  conveyed  to  an  adjoin- 
ing room,  and  medical  attendance  was  sum- 
moned. Nothing  could  staunch  the  gushing 
blood,  and  life  was  rapidly  ebbing  away.  The 
duke  was  informed  that  the  assassin  was  arrest- 
ed. "Alas!"  he  said,  "how  cruel  it  is  to  die 
by  the  hands  of  a  Frenchman!"  Overhearing 


1820.J    DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     173 


The  dying  scene. 


some  one  say  to  the  almost  distracted  duchess 
that  he  hoped  the  wound  would  not  prove  fatal, 
the  duke  replied,  "  No ;  I  am  not  deceived ;  the 
poniard  has  entered  to  the  hilt."  His  sight  be- 
came dim,  and  he  inquired,  "  Caroline,  are  you 
there?"  "Yes,"  she  answered,  "and  I  will 
never  leave  you." 

His  father's  confesso*,  the  Bishop  of  Char- 
tres,  entered,  and  the  dying  man  had  a  few 
moments  of  private  conversation  with  the  eccle- 
siastic. He  then  called  for  his  infant  daughter. 
She  was  brought  to  him,  asleep,  for  it  was  near 
midnight.  Placing  his  hand  upon  her  head, 
he  said,  "  Poor  child !  may  you  be  less  unfor- 
tunate than  the  rest  of  your  family." . 

The  wound  ceased  to  bleed  externally,  and 
its  inward  flow  threatened  suffocation.  The 
duke's  physician,  M.  Boujou,  endeavored  to 
restore  circulation  by  sucking  the  wound. 
"What  are  you  doing?"  exclaimed  the  duke. 
"  For  God's  sake  stop !  Perhaps  the  poniard 
was  poisoned."  Kespiration  was  now  very  dif- 
ficult, and  the  hand  of  the  duke  was  clammy 
with  the  damp  of  death.  As  a  last  resort,  the 
surgeon,  with  his  knife,  opened  and  enlarged 
the  wound.  The  duke,  grasping  the  hand  of 
the  duchess,  patiently  bore  the  painful  oper- 


H        Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1820. 

Assembling  of  the  royal  family. 

ation,  and  then  said,  "  Spare  me  further 
pain." 

Turning  to  his  wife,  whom  he  tenderly  loved, 
he  said,  "Caroline,  take  care  of  yourself  for 
the  sake  of  our  infant,  which  you  bear  in  your 
bosom." 

The  duke  and  the  duchess  of  Orleans,  being 
immediately  summoned,  were  the  first  of  the 
relatives  to  arrive  in  this  chamber  of  death. 
They  were  speedily  followed  by  the  Count 
d'Artois,  the  father  of  the  sufferer,  and  by  the 
Duke  d'Angouleme,  his  elder  brother.  Other 
members  of  the  royal  family  soon  arrived.  In 
the  feeble  accents  of  approaching  death,  the 
duke  inquired, 

"Who  is  the  man  who  has  killed  me?  I 
wish  I  could  see  him,  to  inquire  into  his  mo- 
tives. Perhaps  it  is  some  one  whom  I  have 
unconsciously  offended.  Would  that  I  might 
live  long  enough  to  ask  the  king  to  pardon 
him.  Promise  me,  my  father,  promise  me,  my 
brother,  to  ask  of  the  king  the  life  of  that 
man." 

Another  touching  scene,  of  a  very  delicate 
nature,  which  I  can  not  refrain  from  recording 
occurred  in  this  solemn  hour.  It  was  manifest 
to  the  duke,  as  well  as  to  all  of  his  friends,  that 


1820.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.       175 

Noble  conduct  of  the  Duchess  de  Berri. 

before  the  hour  should  expire  the  spirit  of  the 
dying  would  pass  to  the  tribunal  of  that  God 
in  whose  presence  both  prince- and  peasant  are 
alike.  The  memory  of  all  past  sins,  in  such  an 
hour,  often  crowds  thjs  soul  with  its  tumultuous 
array.  In  whispering  tones,  inaudible  to  others, 
a  few  words  were  interchanged  between  the 
dying  man  and  his  wife.  Then  two  illegitimate 
children,  who  were  born  to  the  duke  when  he 
was  an  exile  in  London,  were  brought  in.  It 
seems  that  he  had  ever  recognized  them  as  his 
own,  and  that  they  had  been  protected  and  fos- 
tered by  both  himself  and  his  lawful  wife. 

As  these  children  entered  the  chamber,  and 
knelt,  sobbing  convulsively,  at  their  father's 
dying  bed,  the  duke  embraced  them  tenderly, 
and,  turning  his  fading  eye  to  his  wife,  said, 

"I  know  you  sufficiently,  Caroline,  to  be  as- 
sured that,  after  me,  you  will  take  care  of  these 
orphans." 

The  duchess  responded  in  an  action  far 
more  impressive  than  words.  Taking  her 
own  babe  into  her  arms  from  its  nurse,  she 
drew  the  unfortunate  children  to  her  bosom, 
and  said,  "  Kiss  your  sister."  It  was  a  noble 
deed.  All  eyes  were  suffused  in  tears.  Few 
can  read  the  simple  record  without  emotion. 


176  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1820. 


Death  and  burial. 


The  duke  then  received,  from  the  bishop, 
absolution,  repeatedly  attempting  the  prayer, 
"  My  God,  pardoTi  rne,  pardon  me ;  and  pardon 
the  man  who  has  taken  my  life !" 

Just  then  the  king,  Louis  XVIIL,  who  was 
very  infirm,  arrived.  "My  uncle,"  said  the 
dying  man,  "  give  me  your  hand,  that  I  may 
kiss  it  for  the  last  time.  I  entreat  you,  in  the 
name  of  my  death,  to  spare  the  life  of  that 
man." 

The  king  replied,  "You  are  not  so  ill  as  you 
suppose.  We  will  speak  of  this  again." 

"Ah!"  exclaimed  the  duke,  "you  do  riot 
say  yes.  The  pardon  of  that  man  would  have 
softened  my  last  moments,  if  I  could  die  with 
the  assurance  that  his  blood  would  not  flow 
after  my  death." 

These  were  his  last  words.  There  was  a 
slight  gasping,  a  convulsive  shuddering  passed 
over  his  frame,  and  the  spirit  of  the  duke  took 
its  flight  to  the  judgment-seat  of  Christ.  The 
remains  were  conveyed,  with  much  funereal 
pageantry,  to  the  vaults  of  St.  Denis,  the  an- 
cient mausoleum  of  the  kings  of  France.  Lou- 
vel,  a  miserable  fanatic,  who  sought  notoriety 
by  the  murder  of  a  prince,  expiated  his  crime 
upon  the  scaffold. 


1824]    DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.    177 


Character  of  Louis  XVIII. 


Seven  months  after  this  assassination,  on  the 
20th  of  September,  1820,  the  Duchess  de  Be'rri 
gave  birth  to  a  son.  He  was  christened  Hen- 
ry, duke  of  Bordeaux.  He  is  now  known  as 
the  Count  de  Chambord,  the  Legitimist  candi- 
date for  the  throne  of  France.  Indeed  the  Le- 
gitimists regard  him  as  their  lawful  sover- 
eign, though  in  exile,  and  give  him  the  title  of 
Henry  Y. 

Louis  XVIII.  retained  the  throne,  upon 
which  the  Allies  had  placed  him,  for  eight 
years,  until  his  death.  He  was  a  good-natured, 
kind-hearted  old  man,  but  so  infirm  from  gout 
and  excessive  obesity,  that  he  could  with  diffi- 
culty walk,  and  he  was  wheeled  around  his  sa- 
loons in  a  chair.  Lamartine,  whose  poetic  na- 
ture ever  bowed  almost  with  adoration  before 
hereditary  royalty,  gives  the  following  pleas- 
ing account  of  his  character : 

"His  natural  talent, cultivated,  reflective,  and 
quick,  full  of  recollections,  rich  in  anecdotes, 
nourished  by  philosophy,  enriched  by  quota- 
tions, never  deformed  by  p°dantry,  rendered 
him  equal,  in  conversation  to  the  most  re- 
nowned literary  characters  of  his  age.  M.  De 
Chateaubriand  had  not  more  elegance,  M.  De 
Talleyrand  more  wit,  Madame  De  Stael  more 

4—12 


178  Louis  PHILIPPE. 

Death  of  Louis  XVIII. 

brilliancy.  Since  the  suppers  of  Potsdam, 
where  the  genius  of  Voltaire  met  the  capacity 
of  Frederick  the  Great,  never  had  the  cabinet 
of  a  prince  been  the  sanctuary  of  more  philos- 
ophy, literature,  talent,  and  taste." 

To  this  it  should  be  added  that  he  was  de- 
voted to  the  interests  of  the  aristocracy;  that 
his  mind  was  almost  exclusively  occupied  in 
making  happy  hits  in  conversation,  and  in  writ- 
ing graceful  billet-doux;  that  the  priests  and 
the  nobles  controlled  him  through  the  all-per- 
suasive influence  of  the  fascinating  Madame  Du 
Cayla.  He  died  on  the  16th  of  September, 
1824.  As  his  last  hour  approached,  and  his 
extremities  became  cold,  and  it  was  manifest 
that  he  had  but  a  few  moments  to  live,  his 
mind  remained  clear  and  composed.  Assum- 
ing a  cheerful  air,  he  said  to  his  family,  gather- 
ed around  his  bed : 

"A  king  of  France  may  die,  but  he  is  never 
ill.  Love  each  other,  and  thus  console  your- 
selves for  the  disasters  of  our  house.  Provi- 
dence has  replaced  us  upon  the  throne." 

He  then  received  extreme  unction,  bade 
adieu  to  all,  and,  ordering  the  curtains  of  his 
bed  to  be  closed,  composed  himself  as  for  or- 
dinary sleep.  With  the  earliest  dawn  of  the 


1824.]    DEATH  OF 'Louis  XVIII.     179 


Charles  X.  and  family. 


morning  the  chief  physician  opened  the  cur- 
tains, and  found  that  his  pulse  was  just  ceasing 
to  beat.  In  a  few  moments  he  breathed  his 
last.  In  accordance  with  court  etiquette  the 
physician  said,  solemnly,  "  The  king  is  dead." 
Then,  turning  to  the  king's  brother,  Charles, 
previously  known  as  the  Count  d'Artois,  he 
bowed  and  said,  "  Long  live  the  king." 

Charles  X.,  into  whose  hands  the  sceptre  thus 
passed,  was  then  in  the  sixty -seventh  year  of 
his  age — having  been  born  in  Versailles,  Octo- 
ber 9,  1757.  This  unfortunate  monarch  is  rep- 
resented, by  his  friends,  as  having  been  one  of 
the  most  accomplished  of  men.  His  horse- 
manship attracted  universal  admiration.  In  all 
social  circles  he  charmed  every  one  who  ap- 
proached him  by  his  grace  and  courtesy.  He 
was  warm-hearted  and  generous.  Though  in 
early  life  a  man  of  pleasure,  he  had  become 
quite  a  devotee ;  and,  to  an  extraordinary  de- 
gree, was  under  the  influence  of  the  priesthood. 
Leaving  the  affairs  of  State  in  the  hands  of 
others,  he  gave  his  time,  his  thoughts,  his  ener- 
gies, to  the  pleasures  of  the  chase.  This  pur- 
suit became,  not  his  recreation,  but  the  serious 
occupation  of  his  life. 

Charles  was  the  father  of  two  sons.     The 


180  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Charles  X.  and  family. 


eldest,  and  consequently  the  heir  to  the  crown, 
was  the  Duke  d'Angoule'me.  He  had  married 
the  daughter  of  Louis  XVI.,  whose  sufferings, 
with  her  brother,  the  dauphin,  in  the  Temple, 
have  moved  the  sympathies  of  the  whole  civil- 
ized world.  The  duke  and  duchess  were  child- 
less, and  with  no  hope  of  offspring. 

His  second  son,  the  Duke  de  Berri,  had  been 
assassinated,  as  we  have  mentioned,  about  four 
years  before,  as  he  was  coming  from  the  opera, 
leaving  his. wife  enciente.  In  the  course  of  a 
few  months  she  gave  birth  to  a  son — the  Duke 
of  Bordeaux.  This  child — now  called  Count 
de  Chambord — was  the  legitimate  heir  to  the 
throne,  next  to  his  uncle,  the  Duke  d'Angou- 
l&ne. 

Six  years  of  the  reign  of  Charles  X.  passed 
away,  during  which  the  discontent  of  the  peo- 
ple was  continually  making  itself  increasingly 
manifest.  They  regarded  the  Government  as 
false  to  the  claims  of  the  masses,  and  devoted 
only  to  the  interests  of  the  aristocracy. 

The  spirit  of  discontent  which  had  long 
been  brooding  now  rose  in  loud  and  angry 
clamor  everywhere  around  the  throne.  The 
court  was  blind  to  its  peril ;  but  thoughtful 
men  perceived  that  the  elements  for  a  moral 


1830.]    DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.       181 


Ball  at  the  Palais  Royal. 


earthquake  were  fast  accumulating.  In  the 
midst  of  these  hourly  increasing  perils,  the 
Duke  of  Orleans,  on  the  31st  of  May,  1830, 
gave  a  ball  at  the  Palais  Royal  in  honor  of 
his  father-in-law,  the  King  of  Naples.  This 
festival  was  of  such  splendor  as  to  astonish 
even  splendor-loving  Paris,  and  was  long  re- 
membered as  one  of  the  most  brilliant  enter- 
tainments the  metropolis  had  ever  witnessed. 
The  immense  fortune  of  the  duke,  his  refined 
taste,  and  the  grandeur  of  the  saloons  of  his 
ancestral  palace,  enabled  him  almost  to  outvie 
royalty  itself  in  the  brilliance  of  the  fete. 

Vast  amphitheatres  bloomed  with  flowers 
in  Eden-like  profusion.  The  immense  colon- 
nades of  the  Palais  Royal  were  prowded  with 
orange-trees,  whose  opening  buds  filled  the  air 
with  fragrance,  and  whose  clusters  of  golden 
fruit  enhanced  the  beauty  of  the  scene.  The 
spacious  roofs  and  rotundas  of  glass  sparkled 
with  thousands  of  wax -lights,  creating  a  spec- 
tacle so  gorgeous  and  glittering  that  even 
those  who  were  accustomed  to  royal  splendor 
were  reminded  of  the  enchanter's  palace  in 
Oriental  fable. 

The  marriage  of  the  Duke  de  Berri,  the  son 
of  Charles  X*  with  Caroline  Mary,  niece  of  the 


182  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 

Striking  remarks  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 

Duchess  of  Orleans,  had  produced  some  recon- 
ciliation between  the  Bourbon  and  the  Orleans 
branches  of  the  royal  family.  The  king  and 
his  family  this  evening,  for  the  first  time,  in 
regal  state  visited  the  Palais  Royal.  As  the 
duke  was  receiving  the  congratulations  of  his 
guests  upon  the  marvellous  splendor  which 
the  palace  presented,  thronged  with  courtiers 
sparkling  with  jewels  and  decorated  with  all 
the  costly  and  glittering  costumes  of  the  old 
regime,  one  of  the  guests,  M.  Salvandy,  shrewd- 
ly observed  to  the  duke, 

"  It  is,  indeed,  quite  a  Neapolitan  fe"te,  your 
highness,  for  we  dance  upon  a  volcano." 

The  duke  with  some  emotion  replied,  "  That 
there  is  a  volcano  here  I  believe  as  firmly  as 
you  do.  But  I  know  that  the  fault  is  not 
mine.  I  shall  not  have  any  occasion,  hereaf- 
ter, to  reproach  myself  for  not  having  endeav- 
ored to  open  the  eyes  of  the  king.  But  what 
could  be  expected  when  nothing  is  listened  to? 
God  only  knows  where  all  this  will  end — I  cer- 
tainly do  not  foresee  what  is  about  to  happen. 
I  can  not  tell  where  all  those  who  are  produc- 
ing this  state  of  things  will  be  in  six  months 
hence  f  but  one  thing  I  do  know,  which  is, 
where  I  shall  be  myself. 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     183 

Complaints  against  the  crown. 

"  Under  all  circumstances  or  changes  which 
may  occur,  my  family  and  myself  will  remain 
in  this  palace.  This  is  our  throne.  Whatever 
may  be  the  peril  of  so  doing,  I  shall  not  move 
from  the  home  of  my  fathers.  I  shall  never 
again  consent  to  separate  the  fate  and  fortune 
of  myself  and  children  from  those  of  my  coun- 
try. This  is  my  unchangeable  determination." 

One  of  the  saloons  contained  two  very  fine 
paintings  of  Montmiral  and  Champ-Aubert, 
two  towns  in  France  in  which  Napoleon,  hero- 
ically struggling  against  dynastic  Europe  com- 
bined in  arms  against  him,  signally  defeated 
and  drove  back  the  Allies.  The  duke,  being 
asked  why  he  allowed  paintings  commemora- 
tive of  the  victories  of  the  Empire  to  hang 
upon  his  walls,  replied,  "  Because  I  like  every 
thing  French." 

Soon  after  this  the  popular  complaints 
against  the  crown  became  so  general,  so  bitter, 
and  the  excitement  so  great,  that  the  king,  by 
the  advice  of  the  ministers  who  governed  him, 
issued  several  ordinances  which  were  regarded 
by  the  people  as  so  despotic,  as  so  subversive 
of  all  popular  rights,  as  to  call  for  resistance 
by  insurrection  and  the  force  of  arms. 

The  first  of  these  famous  ordinances  suspend- 


184  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  fatal  ordinances. 


ed  the  liberty  of  the  press,  and  prohibited  the 
publication  of  any  journals  excepting  such  as 
were  authorized  by  the  Government. 

The  second  dissolved  the  new  Chamber  of 
Deputies,  or  Legislature,  because  the  members 
were  too  liberal  in  their  political  opinions,  as- 
suming that  the  electors  had  been  deceived  by 
the  popular  clamor,  and  had  chosen  such  per- 
sons as  they  ought  not  to  have  chosen. 

The  third  reduced  the  number  of  deputies 
from  three  hundred  and  ninety-five  to  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty-eight,  and  so  altered  the  elect- 
oral franchise,  in  order  to  secure  the  return  of 
members  favorable  to  the  Government,  as  tr 
deprive  a  large  number  of  the  right  of  suffrage 
who  had  heretofore  exercised  it. 

Such,  in  brief,  were  the  ordinances  which 
overthrew  the  throne  of  Charles  X.  and  drove 
the  elder  branch  of  the  Bourbons  into  exile. 
There  were  others  issued  at  the  same  time,  but 
which  were  of  no  material  importance. 

Frivolous  as  was  the  character  of  Charles  X., 
he  had  sagacity  enough  to  know  that  such  de- 
crees could  not  be  issued  in  France  without 
creating  intense  agitation.  His  ministers  also, 
though  the  advocates  of  the  despotic  principles 
of  the  old  regime,  were  men  of  ability.  They 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     185 


Character  of  the  ministry. 


recognized  the  measures  as  desperate.  Popu- 
lar discontent  had  reached  such  a  crisis  that  it 
was  necessary  either  to  silence  it  by  despotic 
power  or  yield  to  it,  introducing  reforms  which 
would  deprive  the  ministers  of  their  places. 

Prince  Polignac  was  at  this  time  prime  min- 
ister. His  mother  had  been  the  bosom-friend 
of  Marie  Antoinette.  Through  his  whole  life 
he  was  the  unswerving  friend  of  the  Bourbons. 
Implicated  in  the  plot  of  Georges  for  the  over- 
throw of  the  First  Consul,  he  was  condemned 
to  death.  Napoleon  spared  his  life,  and  finally 
liberated  him,  upon  which  he  followed  Count 
d'Artois  (Charles  X.)  into  exile.  Eeturning 
with  the  Bourbons,  in  the  rear  of  the  Allied 
armies,  he  was  rewarded  for  his  life-long  fidel- 
ity to  the  ancient  regime  by  the  highest  honors. 

The  sorrows  of  life  had  left  their  impress 
upon  his  pensive  features.  He  was  well-read, 
very  decided  in  his  views  that  the  people  were 
made  to  be  governed,  not  to  govern.  He  was 
energetic,  but  possessed  of  so  little  worldly  wis- 
dom that  he  thought  that  the  people,  however 
much  exasperated,  could  be  easily  subdued  by 
determined  action. 

M.  de  la  Bourdon naye,  Minister  of  the  Inte- 
rior, like  Polignac,  was  an  ultra  Eoyalist  He 


186  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


M.  de  Bourmont. 


had  been  one  of  the  most  violent  of  the  Ven- 
deans  in  their  opposition  to  the  Revolution,  and 
is  represented,  even  by  those  who  were  in  sym- 
pathy with  him,  as  wishing  to  govern  by  a  roy- 
alist reign  of  terror. 

M.  de  Bourmont,  Minister  of  War,  had  been 
a  staunch  Royalist  in  the  days  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, struggling  with  the  Vendeans  in  defense 
of  the  monarchy.  Upon  the  establishment  of 
the  Empire  he  gave  his  adhesion  to  Napoleon. 
Being  a  man  of  ability,  he  was  placed  in  re- 
sponsible posts.  At  Waterloo,  upon  the  eve 
of  the  great  struggle,  he  deserted  to  the  Allies, 
carrying  as  his  peace-offering  the  betrayal  of 
the  emperor's  plan  of  campaign.  It  is  sup- 
posed that  his  testimony  against  Marshal  Ney 
sealed  the  fate  of  that  illustrious  man.  The 
French  people  had  not  forgotten  his  defection 
at  Waterloo,  and  he  was  exceedingly  unpopu- 
lar. 

These  were  the  prominent  ministers.  The 
other  members  of  the  cabinet,  though  men  of 
ability,  were  not  of  historic  note.  The  origi- 
nal appointment  of  these  ministers,  whose  opin- 
ions were  so  obnoxious  and  well  known,  had 
caused  great  indignation.  The  liberal  press  as- 
sailed them  with  vehemence.  The  Journal  dea 


1830.]     DEATH   OF  Louis  XVIII.     187 


Dramatic  scene. 


Debate,  after  announcing  the  names  of  the  min- 
isters, exclaimed : 

"The  emigration  of  M.  de  Polignac,  the  fury 
of  proscription  of  M.  de  la  Bourdonnaye,  de- 
sertion to  the  enemy  in  M.  de  Bourmont — such 
are  the  three  principles  in  the  three  leading 
persons  of  the  administration.  Press  upon  it. 
Nothing  but  humiliation,  misfortune,  and  dan- 
ger will  drive  it  from  power. 

M.  Guizot  was  then  editor  of  the  journal  Le 
Temps.  He  had  already  attained  renown.  His 
weighty  editorials,  distinguished  alike  for  co- 
gent argument  and  depth  of  philosophical 
thought,  carried  conviction  to  the  most  intel- 
ligent minds.  M.  Thiers  was  editor  of  the  Na- 
tionale.  His  great  abilities,  already  developed 
in  his  "History  of  the  French  Revolution," 
had  given  him  a  commanding  position  among 
the  journalists  on  the  liberal  side.  Both  of 
these  distinguished  writers,  and  many  others, 
assailed  the  ministry  with  such  popular  effect, 
that  it  was  clear  that  their  utterances  must  be 
silenced,  or  the  ministry  must  fall.  Hence  the 
Ordinances  were  issued. 

The  scene  at  the  signing  of  these  ordinances 
is  represented  by  Lamartine  as  quite  dramatic. 
The  important  measure  of  the  coup  d'etat  was 


188  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Charles  X.  and  his  ministers. 


anxiously  discussed  under  the  pledge  of  secre- 
cy. The  project  of  the  ministers  was  cordially 
approved  by  the  king.  He  is  reported  to  have 
said: 

"  It  is  not  the  ministry,  it  is  the  crown,  which 
is  attacked.  It  is  the  cause  of  the  throne 
against  revolution  which  is  at  issue.  One  or 
the  other  must  succumb.  I  recollect  what  oc- 
curred in  1789.  The  first  step  my  unhappy 
brother,  Louis  XVI.,  made  in  retreat  before 
the  revolutionists  was  the  signal  of  his  ruin. 
They,  too,  pretended  fidelity  to  the  crown,  and 
demanded  only  the  dismissal  of  its  ministers. 
He  yielded,  and  all  was  lost.  Gentlemen,  I 
will  not  dismiss  you.  No  I  Let  them  con- 
duct us,  if  they  please,  to  the  scaffold.  But 
let  us  fight  for  our  rights;  and  if  we  are  to 
fall,  fall  sword  in  hand.  I  had  rather  be  led 
to  execution  on  horseback  than  in  a  cart." 

On  the  morning  of  the  25th  of  July,  1830, 
the  king  and  his  ministers  met  at  the  palace  of 
St.  Cloud  to  sign  the  fatal  ordinances.  They 
all  seem  to  have  been  in  some  degree  aware  of 
the  peril  of  the  step.  Many  of  them  had  passed 
a  sleepless  night,  and  were  deeply  impressed 
with  the  solemnity  of  the  occasion.  They  sat 
pale,  silent,  anxious,  as  Prince  Polignac  slowly 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     189 


Their  unanimity. 


read  the  ordinances  and  presented  them  to  the 
king  for  his  signature.  Charles  X.  took  the 
pen,  turned  pale,  and  for  a  moment  hesitated. 
Then  raising  his  eyes  to  heaven,  as  if  implor- 
ing Divine  aid,  he  said,  "The  more  I  think  of  it, 
the  more  I  am  convinced  that  it  is  impossible 
to  do  otherwise  than  I  do."  With  these  wordy 
he  affixed  his  signature  to  the  document  which 
expelled  him  and  his  dynasty  from  France.* 

The  ministers,  one  after  another,  countersign- 
ed the  ordinances.  Not  a  word  was  spoken. 
"  Despair,"  says  Alison,  "  was  painted  on  every 
visage."  Polignac,  in  the  temporary  absence 

*  "The  ministers  took  their  places  in  silence  around  the 
fatal  table.  Charles  X.  had  the  dauphin  on  his  right  and  M. 
de  Polignac  on  his  left.  He  questioned  each  of  his  servants, 
one  after  another,  and  when  he  came  to  M.  d'Hausrez,  that 
minister  repeated  his  observations  of  the  preceding  day.  ' '  Do 
you  refuse  ?"  inquired  Charles  X.  "Sire,"  replied  the  minis- 
ter, "may  I  be  allowed  to  address  one  question  to  the  king? 
Is  your  majesty  resolved  on  proceeding,  should  your  ministers 
draw  back  ?"  "Yes,"  said  Charles,  firmly.  The  minister  of 
marine  took  the  pen  and  signed. 

"When  all  the  signatures  were  affixed,  there  was  a  solemn 
and  awful  pause.  An  expression  of  high-wrought  energy, 
mingled  with  uneasiness,  sat  on  the  faces  of  the  ministers. 
M.  de  Folignac's  alone  wore  a  look  of  triumph.  Charles  X. 
walked  up  and  down  the  room  with  perfect  composure."— 
France  under  Louis  Philippe,  by  Louis  Blanc,  p.  107. 


190  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  antagonistic  forces. 


of  M.  Bourmont,  was  acting  Minister  of  War. 
In  reply  to  the  inquiry  what  means  of  resist- 
ance the  Government  had  in  case  of  insurrec- 
tion, he  replied,  with  confidence  equal  to  his 
self-deception, 

"No  popular  movement  is  to  be  appre- 
hended. At  all  events,  Paris  is  sufficiently 
garrisoned  to  crush  any  rebellion  and  guarantee 
public  tranquillity." 

The  force  upon,  which  Polignac  relied  con- 
sisted of  11,550  men  in  Paris,  with  twelve 
pieces  of  cannon.  There  were  also  fifteen  bat- 
talions of  infantry  and  thirty -four  squadrons  of 
cavalry  stationed  in  towns  not  far  distant,  which 
could  be  rapidly  collected  to  aid  the  troops 
within  the  walls.  On  the  other  hand,  the  city 
of  Paris,  in  a  general  insurrection,  could  fur- 
nish 200,000  fighting  men.  Many  of  these  had 
seen  actual  service.  There  was  a  National 
Guard,  the  militia  of  the  metropolis,  organ- 
ized and  well  armed,  consisting  of  40,000  men. 
A  portion  of  the  royal  troops,  also,  could  not 
be  relied  upon  in  a  struggle  with  the  people. 
General  Marmont,  one  of  the  marshals  of  the 
Empire,  was  in  command  of  the  Royalist  troops. 
He  was  exceedingly  unpopular  in  Paris,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  feeble  defense  it  was  thought 


1830.J    DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     191 


Issuing  the  ordinances. 


he  made  when  the  city  was  captured  by  the 
Allies. 

The  ordinances  were  secretly  printed,  and 
during  the  night  of  the  25th  were  placarded  on 
the  walls  of  Paris.  They  also  appeared  simul- 
taneously the  next  morning  in  the  Moniteur. 
Though  some  of  the  more  sagacious  had  been 
suspecting  that  the  Government  might  resort  to 
measures  of  desperation,  these  ordinances  took 
the  whole  community  by  surprise.  Crowds 
gathered  in  the  coffee  -  houses,  at  the  doors  of 
the  public  journals,  and  in  all  the  prominent 
places  of  resort.  There  was  no  sudden  ebulli- 
tion of  indignation,  and  no  immediate  demon- 
strations of  violence.  The  event  had  come  so 
suddenly  that  the  masses  were  unprepared  for 
action,  and  the  leaders  required  time  to  decide 
whether  it  were  best  to  attempt  forcible  resist 
ance,  and,  if  so,  what  measures  to  that  end  could 
most  effectually  be  adopted.  Though  through 
out  the  day  no  insurrectionary  movements 
appeared,  still  agitation  was  rapidly  on  the 
increase,  and  Paris  represented  a  bee-hive  into 
which  some  disturbing  element  had  been  cast. 

The  editors  of  the  leading  journals,  and  sev- 
eral others  of  the  most  illustrious  advocates  of 
liberal  opinions,  held  a  consultation  upon  the 


192  Louis   PHILIPFK.  [1830. 


Risings  of  opposition. 


state  of  affairs.  But  night  came,  and  the  result 
of  their  deliberations  was  not  made  known. 
The  day  had  been  serene  and  beautiful,  invit- 
ing all  the  population  of  Paris  into  the  streets. 
The  balmy  summer  night  kept  them  there. 
Innumerable  rumors  increased  the  excitement, 
and  it  was  evident  that  a  few  words  from  influ- 
ential lips  would  create  an  insurrection,  which 
might  amount  to  a  revolution. 

The  gentlemen  who  had  met  in  conference 
— forty-four  in  number — after  careful  delibera- 
tion, and  having  obtained  the  opinion  of  the 
most  celebrated  lawyers  that  the  ordinances 
were  illegal,  gallantly  resolved  to  resist  them  at 
the  hazard  of  their  lives.  They  accordingly 
issued  a  protest,  to  which  each  one  affixed  his 
signature.  The  boldness  of  the  act  command- 
ed the  admiration  even  of  the  advocates  of  ar- 
bitrary power.  In  their  protest  they  said : 

"  The  Government  has  lost  the  character  of 
legality  which  commands  obedience.  We  re- 
sist it  in  so  far  as  we  are  concerned.  It  is  for 
France  to  determine  how  far  resistance  should 
extend." 

The  liberal  journals  refused  to  take  out  the 
license  the  ordinances  required.  This  act  of 
defiance  the  Government  met  by  sending  the 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     193 


Silencing  the  journals. 


police  to  seize  the  journals  and  close  their  print- 
ing-offices. A  commissary  of  police,  with  two 
gendarmes,  repaired  to  the  office  of  the  Temps, 
edited  by  M.  Guizot,  in  the  Boulevard  des  Ita- 
liens.  They  found  the  doors  barred  against 
them.  A  blacksmith  was  sent  for  to  force  the 
entrance.  This  collected  a  crowd,  and  he  re- 
fused to  act  in  obedience  to  the  police.  A  sec- 
ond blacksmith  was  sent  for.  As  he  com- 
menced operations  the  crowd  took  his  tools 
from  him.  At  length,  however,  an  entrance 
was  effected,  and  a  seal  was  put  upon  the  print- 
ing-presses. This  scene,  occurring  in  one  of 
the  most  populous  thoroughfares  of  Paris,  cre- 
ated intense  agitation.  Still,  thus  far,  there  had 
been  so  little  commotion  that  the  king  and  his 
ministers  were  quite  sanguine  that  their  meas- 
ures would  prove  triumphant  Charles  X.  was 
so  infatuated  that  on  that  morning — the  26th — 
he  went  to  Rambouillet,  and  spent  the  day  in 
hunting. 

During  the  night  of  the  26th  there  was  an- 
other very  important  meeting  of  the  leaders  of 
the  liberal  party  at  the  mansion  of  M.  Casimir 
PeVier.  About  thirty  were  present.  Nearly 
all  were  members  of  the  Chamber  of  Deputies, 
and  in  intellectual  strength  were  among  the 
4—13 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Diversity  of  counsel. 


most  illustrious  men  in  France.  Anxiously,, 
yet  firmly,  they  discussed  the  course  to  be  pur- 
sued. It  was  a  fearful  question  to  decide.  Sub- 
mission placed  France,  bound  helplessly  hand 
and  foot,  under  the  heel  of  Bourbon  despotism. 
Unsuccessful  insurrection  would  consign  them 
either  to  life-long  imprisonment  in  the  dungeon 
or  to  death  upon  the  scaffold. 

All  agreed  in  condemning  the  ordinances  as 
illegal.  The  more  cautious  hesitated  at  rous- 
ing the  energies  of  insurrection,  and  submit- 
ting the  issue  to  the  decision  of  the  sword, 
The  young  and  impetuous  advocated  an  im- 
mediate appeal  to  arms.  While  deliberating, 
a  deputation  appeared  professing  to  represent 
the  electors  of  Paris,  and  urged  that,  as  the 
Government  was  manifestly  resolved  to  sup- 
port the  despotic  ordinances  by  force,  nothing 
remained  to  the  people  but  to  have  recourse  to 
insurrection.  It  was  also  stated  that  nearly 
all  the  workmen  from  the  manufactories  were 
in  the  streets,  eager  to  throw  up  barricades 
and  to  defend  their  rights  at  every  hazard. 

At  the  same  time  committees  presented 
themselves  from  various  bodies  of  young  men, 
urging  the  deputies  to  take  the  lead  of  the 
patriotic  movement  in  which  the  people  were 


1830.]    DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     195 


The  conflict  in  Paris. 


resolved  to  engage.  Their  solicitations  were 
intensified  by  occasional  discharges  of  musket- 
ry in  the  streets,  and  by  the  clatter  of  iron 
hoofs,  as  the  king's  cavalry  here  and  there 
made  charges  to  disperse  threatening  gather- 
ings, or  to  prevent  the  erection  of  barricades. 
It  does  not,  however,  appear  that  any  very  de- 
cisive action  was  tiaken  by  this  body.  Late  at 
night  it  adjourned,  to  meet  again  the  next  day. 

The  morning  of  the  27th  revealed  a  scene 
of  turmoil  and  agitation  such  as  even  excita- 
ble Paris  had  rarely  witnessed.  The  king  and 
his  court,  with  twelve  hundred  of  the  troops, 
withdrawn  from  the  city,  were  at  St.  Cloud. 
Large  bodies  of  men  were  surging  through  the 
streets,  apparently  without  leaders  or  definite 
object,  but  ready  for  any  deeds  of  daring. 
Every  hour  of  the  day  affairs  were  more  men- 
acing. Frequent  reports  were  brought  by  the 
police  to  the  ministers  at  St.  Cloud,  which  rep- 
resented that,  though  business  was  generally 
suspended,  and  there  were  agitated  crowds  in 
the  streets,  still  no  serious  danger  was  appre- 
hended. 

But  General  Marmont,  who  was  intrusted 
•with  the  command  of  the  garrison  in  Paris, 
early  in  the  morning  became  alarmed  in  view 


196  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Threatening  aspect  of  affairs. 


of  the  struggle  which  he  apprehended  was 
about  to  commence,  and  of  the  inadequate 
means  under  his  control  to  meet  it.  In  count- 
ing up  his  forces  he  found  that  he  had  not 
more  than  ten  thousand  troops  within  the 
walls.  Of  these  not  more  than  four  thousand 
could  be  relied  upon  in  a  conflict  with  the 
people. 

Well  might  General  Marmont  tremble. 
From  the  remote  sections  and  narrow  streets 
the  populace  were  thronging  to  central  points. 
The  boulevards,  from  the  Place  de  la  Bastile 
to  the  Madeleine,  presented  a  dense  mass, 
whose  angry  looks,  loud  words,  and  violent 
gestures  indicated  that  they  would  fight  with 
desperation  should  the  struggle  once  com- 
mence. Many  of  them  were  skilled  in  the 
use  of  arms.  They  knew  how  to  construct 
barricades.  Every  house  was  a  fortress  from 
whose  windows  and  roof  the  populace  could 
hurl  destruction  upon  the  heads  of  the  troops, 
wedged  in  the  narrow  streets.  And  General 
Marmont  had  reason  to  fear  that  of  the  small 
force  under  his  command  six  thousand  would 
fraternize  with  the  people  upon  the  report  of 
the  first  musket. 

The  war-worn  marshal  skillfully  arranged 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     197 


Incidents  of  the  battle. 


his  forces,  evidently  copying  the  operations  of 
Napoleon  in  his  famous  repulse  of  the  attack 
of  the  sections  upon  the  Convention.  Three 
battalions  were  placed  at  the  Carrousel,  which 
might  be  regarded  as  a  vast  fortress  in  the 
centre  of  the  city,  walled  in  by  the  Tuileries 
and  the  Louvre.  Three  battalions  were  sta- 
tioned in  the  Place  de  la  Concorde,  with  two 
pieces  of  artillery.  Three  battalions  of  the 
line  were  ranged  along  the  boulevards  from 
the  Place  of  the  Bastile  to  the  Madeleine. 
General  Marmont  did  not  wait  for  an  attack 
to  be  made  upon  him.  He  sent  out  detach- 
ments to  scour  the  streets  and  to  prevent  the 
erection  of  barricades.  Reports  had  reached 
him  that  several  were  in  process  of  construc- 
tion in  the  most  narrow  streets. 

The  first  barricade  encountered  was  in  the 
Rue  St.  Honore*,  nearly  in  front  of  the  Palais 
Royal.  The  troops  endeavored  to  disperse  the 
defenders  by  a  volley  in  the  air.  As  this  pro- 
duced no  effect,  they  opened  upon  them  with 
ft  point-blank  discharge,  by  which  several  were 
wounded,  and  one  man  was  killed.  The  other 
detachments  met  with  no  opposition,  but  re- 
moved several  barricades,  and  dispersed  tu- 
multuous gatherings.  The  agitation  was  hour- 


198  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 

Fraternization  of  the  troops  and  the  populace. 

ly  on  the  increase.  Eandom  shots  were  heard 
in  different  parts  of  the  city.  The  dead  body 
of  the  man  shot  while  defending  the  barri- 
cade was  paraded  in  blood-stained  ghastliness 
through  the  streets,  exciting  frenzied  passions. 
The  troops  of  the  line,  so  called,  who  were 
known  to  be  in  sympathy  with  the  people, 
and  whom  General  Marmont  distrusted,  were 
received  with  shouts  of  applause  wherever 
they  appeared. 

A  vast  concourse  of  the  people  had  assem- 
bled in  front  of  the  Palais  Eoyal.  A  detach- 
ment of  the  line  was  sent  to  guard  the  palace. 
The  troops  and  the  populace  mingled  togeth- 
er, talking  and  laughing.  As  the  multitude 
pressed  the  troops,  they  opened  their  ranks 
and  let  the  living  torrent  pass  through,  amidst 
loud  cheers.  Several  armorers'  shops  were 
broken  open,  and  it  was  manifest  that  vigorous 
preparations  were  going  on  in  anticipation  of 
the  struggle  of  the  succeeding  day.  Still  the 
king,  with  an  infatuation  which  is  inexplica- 
ble, took  no  measures  to  add  to  the  military 
strength  at  the  disposal  of  General  Marmont. 
Thus  passed  the  day  of  the  27th.  It  seems 
that  at  night  the  king  became  somewhat 
alarmed,  for  at  eleven  o'clock  he  issued  an 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     199 

Retreat  of  the  king. 

ordinance  from  his  retreat  at  St.  Cloud  declar- 
ing Paris  to  be  in  a  state  of  siege. 

During  all  the  hours  of  the  night  of  the 
27th  there  reigned  the  calm  which  precedes 
the  storm.  The  leaders  of  the  Liberal  party — 
among  whom  were  to  be  found  many  of  the 
most  intelligent  men,  the  wisest  statesmen,  and 
the  most  accomplished  generals  in  France — 
had  fully  decided  to  submit  their  cause  to  the 
arbitrament  of  battle.  Calm  deliberation,  or- 
ganization, carefully  matured  plans,  were  req- 
uisite to  meet  the  marshalled  forces  of  the  mon- 
archy. It  was  no  longer  a  mere  street  insur- 
rection, but  a  kingdom  was  to  be  revolution- 
ized. Immediately  a  new  and  tremendous  im- 
pulse was  secretly  given  to  the  movement. 
Committees  were  busy.  Agents  were  active, 
invested  with  authority  which  the  populace 
instinctively  recognized  without  inquiring  into 
the  source  from  which  it  emanated. 

With  the  early  light  of  the  next  morning — 
the  28th — the  result  of  the  operations  of  the 
night  was  manifest.  In  the  vicinity  of  the 
Place  of  the  Bastile  there  is  a  portion  of  the 
city  densely  populated,  called  the  Faubourg 
St.  Antoine.  It  is  inhabited  by  a  class  in  a 
humble  condition  of  life,  who  have  ever  taken 


200  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


AH  Paris  in  arms. 


a  very  prominent  part  in  all  the  insurrections 
which  have  agitated  Paris.  Eeckless  of  their 
own  lives  as  well  as  of  the  lives  others,  they 
have  ever  been  the  most  desperate  and  the 
most  dreaded  fighters  in  every  conflict  in  the 
streets. 

With  the  morning  dawn  the  faubourg  seem- 
ed to  be  swarming.  Guided  by  some  mysteri- 
ous but  common  impulse,  a  huge  and  disorder- 
ly mass — ever  increasing — of  maddened  men 
and  equally  maddened  women,  armed  with 
swords,  muskets,  pickaxes,  and  every  other 
conceivable  weapon  of  offense  or  defense, 
surged  along  through  the  Eue  St.  Denis  and 
along  the  crowded  boulevards  towards  the 
Place  of  the  Madeleine,  which  was  occupied 
by  the  military.  At  the  same  time,  at  several 
important  points  along  the  boulevards,  the  peo- 
ple were  busy — men,  women,  and  boys — tear- 
ing up  the  pavements,  seizing  and  overturning 
omnibuses  and  carts,  cutting  down  the  trees, 
pitching  heavy  articles  of  furniture  out  of  the 
windows  of  the  houses,  and  thus  constructing 
barricades. 

The  points  selected  and  the  artistic  style  of 
structure  indicated  that  military  genius  of  a 
high  order  guided  the  movement.  Only  a 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis  XVIII.     201 


Triumph  of  the  insurgents. 


small  detachment  of  troops  could  be  sent  out 
from  the  central  position  at  the  Tuileries.  As 
they  could  not  be  everywhere,  the  intrench- 
ments  of  the  populace  rose  in  various  parts  of 
the  city,  unopposed,  with  inconceivable  rapidi- 
ty, and  with  almost  military  precision.  Large 
bodies  advanced  simultaneously  to  the  gun- 
smiths' shops,  to  the  police  stations  and  guard- 
houses, to  the  arsenal  and  powder  manufacto- 
ry, to  the  artillery  de'pot  of  St.  Thomas  Aqui- 
nas ;  and  the  guns,  muskets,  and  ammunition 
thus  seized  were  freely  distributed  to  the  peo- 
ple. The  National  Guard,  forty  thousand 
strong,  was  thoroughly  armed.  The  ranks  of 
this  formidable  body  were  filled  with  the  citi- 
zens of  Paris,  who  were  all  in  sympathy  with 
the  insurrection.  Many  of  them  appeared  in 
the  streets  even  in  their  uniform. 

A  band  of  armed  men  advanced  to  the  H6- 
tel  de  Ville,  where  but  sixteen  soldiers  were 
stationed  on  guard.  The  soldiers,  attempting 
no  opposition,  withdrew  unmolested.  A  huge 
tricolor  flag,  unfurled  from  the  roof,  announced 
with  the  peal  of  the  tocsin  that  that  important 
post,  almost  an  impregnable  citadel  in  the 
hands  of  determined  men,  had  fallen  into  the 
possession  of  the  people.  The  tidings  swept 


202  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Success  of  the  insurgents. 


the  streets  like  a  flood,  giving  a  new  impulse  to 
the  universal  enthusiasm.  A  few  moments  af- 
ter another  band  burst  open  the  gates  of  Notre 
Dame,  and  another  tricolor  flag  waved  in  the 
breeze  from  one  of  its  towers ;  while  the  bells 
of  the  cathedral  with  their  sublime  voices  pro- 
claimed to  the  agitated  yet  exultant  masses  the 
additional  triumph.  It  was  scarcely  midday, 
and  yet  four-fifths  of  Paris  was  in  the  undis- 
puted possession  of  the  insurgents,  and,  as  by 
magic,  from  twenty  spires  and  towers  the  tri- 
color flag  spread  its  folds  in  defiance  to  the 
banner  of  the  Bourbons.  More  than  a  hun- 
dred barricades  had  been  erected,  or  were  in 
the  process  of  erection.  Behind  them  stood 
more  than  a  hundred  thousand  well-armed,  de- 
termined men.  With  such  rapidity  and  sagac- 
ity had  all  this  been  effected  that  there  had 
been  scarcely  any  collision  worthy  of  notice. 
A  few  charges  had  been  made  by  the  gen- 
darmery  in  dispersing  crowds,  and  a  few  ran- 
dom shots  had  been  fired. 

General  Marmont,  in  preparation  for  assum- 
ing the  offensive,  concentrated  the  whole  of  his 
little  band  around  the  Tuileries,  and  construct- 
ed for  himself  a  fortified  camp  in  the  Carrousel' 
protected  by  eight  guns.  A  few  troops  were 


1830.]     DEATH  OF  Louis   XVIII.     203 


Tactics  of  General  Marmont. 


forwarded  to  him  from  Vincennes  and  Ver- 
sailles, so  that  he  could  display  for  the  defense 
of  that  central  point  thirty-six  hundred  sol- 
diers of  the  Guard,  tried  men,  upon  whom  he 
could  rely.  Six  hundred  of  these  were  horse- 
men. Forming  three  columns,  he  sent  one 
along  the  banks  of  the  river  to  recapture  the 
Hotel  de  Ville,  to  demolish  all  the  barricades,- 
and  disperse  the  armed  bands,  until  they  reach- 
ed the  Place  of  the  Bastile.  Another  was  to 
advance  to  the  same  point  by  the  boulevards. 
The  third  was  to  force  its  way  through  the 
Rue  St.  Honore*  to  the  Market  of  the  Inno- 
cents. Along  these  three  lines  the  battle  now 
raged  fiercely,  with  equal  determination  on 
each  side.  The  scene  of  tumult,  carnage,  hor- 
ror, which  ensued  can  neither  be  described  nor 
imagined.  The  streets  were  narrow.  Every 
house  was  a  fortress,  from  whose  windows  a 
deadly  fire  was  poured  upon  the  troops.  The 
combatants,  inflamed  by  the  fury  and  terror  of 
the  strife,  neither  asked  nor  granted  quarter. 
Hour  after  hour  they  fought,  Frenchmen 
against  Frenchmen,  brother  against  brother, 
and  the  pavements  were  clotted  with  blood. 
Barricades  were  taken  and  retaken.  There 
were  triumphant  charges  and  murderous  re- 
pulsea 


204  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Progress  of  the  insurrection. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED. 

NIGHT  came,  the  night  of  the  28th  of  July, 
1830.  The  royal  troops,  having  really  ac- 
complished nothing  of  any  moment  in  their 
conflict  with  the  insurgent  people,  were  order- 
ed to  avail  themselves  of  the  darkness  to  re- 
treat from  all  the  positions  they  had  gained. 
Thus,  before  midnight  the  troops,  virtually  de- 
feated, sought  refuge  in  concentrating  them- 
selves in  their  fortified  camp  at  the  Carrousel. 
It  was  with  no  little  difficulty  that  some  of 
them  fought  their  way  back  to  regain  the  quar- 
ters which  they  had  left. 

Two  parties  must  ever  co-operate  in  such 
scenes  as  we  are  now  describing.  There  must 
be  not  only  bold  men,  with  arms  in  their  hands, 
to  achieve,  but  there  must  be  sagacious  men  in 
council  to  plan  and  direct.  During  the  day  a 
sort  of  provisional  government  was  established 
by  the  insurgents,  which  continued  in  session 
until  midnight.  The  voices  of  the  street  can- 


1830.]     CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.     205 


Night  of  tumult. 


non  had  summoned  Lafayette  to  Paris,  and  he 
consecrated  his  world- wide  renown  to  the  cause 
of  popular  rights,  for  which  he  had  fought  in 
America,  and  to  which  he  had  been  ever  true 
in  Europe.  M.  Lafitte,  the  wealthiest  banker 
in  Paris,  consecrated  his  fortune  to  the  cause. 
M.  Thiers,  never  prone  to  follow  any  lead  but 
that  of  his  own  vigorous  mind,  though  he  had 
united  with  other  journalists  in  recommending 
resistance,  now  objected  to  any  resort  to  vio- 
lence, and  demanded  that  the  resistance  should 
be  legal  only.  Being  outvoted  by  his  more 
practical  compeers  —  Lafayette,  Lafitte,  and 
Mauguin — he  retired  in  displeasure,  and,  aban« 
cloning  the  conflict,  took  refuge  in  the  country 
at  some  distance  from  Paris.  To  his  remon- 
strances Lafayette  replied  in  language  which 
one  would  deem  convincing  to  every  mind: 

"Legal  means  have  been  cut  short  by  the 
ordinances  in  the  Moniteur,  and  the  discharges 
of  artillery  you  hear  in  the  streets.  Victory 
can  alone  now  decide  the  question." 

There  was  but  little  sleep  for  any  one  in 
Paris  that  night.  A  population  of  a  million 
and  a  half  of  people,  crowded  in  narrow  streets, 
was  in  a  state  of  the  wildest  excitement  The 
air  was  filled  with  rumors  of  the  approaching 


206  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  "  Marseillaise  Hymn." 


forces  of  the  monarchy.  The  tramp  of  armed 
men,  the  rumbling  of  the  ponderous  enginery 
of  war,  the  clamor  of  workmen  throwing  up 
barricades,  the  shouts  of  the  mob,  and  often, 
rising  above  all,  the  soul-stirring  strains  of  the 
"  Marseillaise  Hymn,"  pealed  forth  from  thou 
sands  of  impassioned  lips,  together  with  the 
darkness  of  the  night,  the  flash  of  torches,  the 
blaze  of  bonfires,  presented  a  spectacle  sub- 
lime beyond  comprehension.  The  "Marseillaise 
Hymn"  is  unquestionably  the  most  powerful 
composition  in  the  world,  both  in  its  words 
and  its  music,  to  rouse  the  populace  to  a  fren- 
zy of  enthusiasm.  We  give  below  a  vigorous 
translation  of  the  first  verse : 

Ye  sons  of  France,  awake  to  glory! 

Hark  !  hark !  what  myriads  bid  you  rise ! 
Your  children,  wives,  and  grandsires  hoary, 

Behold  their  tears  and  hear  their  cries ! 
Shall  hateful  tyrants,  mischief  breeding, 
With  hireling  hosts,  a  ruffian  band, 
Affright  and  desolate  the  land, 
While  peace  and  liberty  lie  bleeding  ? 
(CAorws.)     To  arms!  to  arms,  ye  brave  ! 

Th'  avenging  sword  unsheath ! 
March  on !  march  on !  all  hearts  resolved 
On  liberty  or  death ! 

But  no  translation  can  equal  the  force  of  the* 
original. 


1830.]     CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.     207 


Consternation  of  the  court. 


The  king  and  his  courtiers  at  St.  Cloud  were 
struck  with  consternation  as  they  received  the 
tidings  of  the  general  and  successful  revolt. 
The  booming  of  the  cannon  in  the  streets  of 
Paris  could  be  distinctly  heard.  With  his  spy- 
glass, from  the  heights  behind  the  chateau,  the 
king  could  see.  the  tricolor,  the  representative 
of  deadly  hostility  to  his  dynasty,  unfurled 
from  the  Hotel  de  Yille  and  from  the  towers 
of  Notre  Dame,  and  then  from  more  than  twen- 
ty other  prominent  points  in  the  city.  At  four 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  a  dispatch  from  Gen- 
eral Marmont  informed  the  king  of  the  desper- 
ate state  of  affairs.  The  Eoyal  Guard,  com- 
posed largely  of  Swiss  mercenaries,  had  been 
faithful  to  discipline.  But  the  troops  of  the 
line,  all  Frenchmen,  had  in  many  instances  re- 
fused to  fire  upon  the  insurgents. 

The  fearful  and  unexpected  crisis  roused  the 
king  to  action.  It  is  said  he  displayed  more 
of  coolness  and  energy  than  any  of  his  minis- 
ters. Orders  were  sent  to  General  Marmont 
to  concentrate  his  forces  as  speedily  as  possible 
at  the  Tuileries.  Agents  were  dispatched  to 
all  the  divisions  of  the  Royal  Guard  garrisoned 
in  the  towns  in  the  vicinity  of  Paris  to  break 
camp  immediately,  and  move  with  the  utmost 


208  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  royal  family. 


haste  to  the  capital.  The  king's  eldest  son, 
the  Duke  d'Angouleme,  of  whom  we  have  pre- 
viously spoken  as  having  married  his  cousinr 
the  unhappy  but  heroic  and  very  noble  daugh- 
ter of  Louis  XVI.,  was  with  his  father  at  St. 
Cloud.  The  duchess  was  absent.  The  widow 
also  of  the  king's  second  son,  the  Duke  de  Ber- 
ri,  was  at  St.  Cloud  with  her  two  children,  a 
daughter  ten  years  old,  and  the  little  boy,  the 
Duke  of  Bordeaux  (Count  de  Chambord),  nine 
years  of  age.  These  constituted  the  royal  fam- 

ay- 

"  While  Charles  X.  thought  only  of  inspir- 
ing all  around  him  with  his  own  fatal  security, 
a  bold  scheme  was  concocting,  almost  before  his- 
eyes,  in  the  apartments  of  Madame  de  Grentaul. 
Convinced  of  the  old  monarch's  impotence  ta 
defend  his  dynasty,  General  Vincent  had  re- 
solved to  save  royalty  without  the  king's  co- 
operation, unknown  to  the  king,  and,  if  neces- 
sary, despite  the  king.  He  went  to  Madame 
de  Gentaul  and  set  forth  to  her  that,  in  the  ex- 
isting state  of  things,  jhe  fate  of  the  monarchy 
depended  upon  a  heroic  resolve,  and  he  there- 
fore proposed  to  her  to  take  the  Duchess  de 
Berri  and  her  son,  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux,  to 
Paris.  He  suggested  that  they  should  take 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      209 


The  Duchess  de  Berri. 


Neuilly  in  their  way,  get  hold  of  the  Duke  of 
Orleans,  and  oblige  him  by  main  force  to  take 
part  in  the  hazard  of  the  enterprise.  They 
should  then  enter  Paris  by  the  faubourgs,  and 
the  Duchess  de  Berri,  exhibiting  the  royal 
child  to  the  people,  should  confide  him  to  the 
generosity  of  the  combatants.  Madame  de 
Gentaul  approved  of  this  scheme.  In  spite  of 
its  adventurous  character,  or  rather  for  that 
very  reason,  it  won  upon  the  excitable  imagi- 
nation of  the  Duchess  de  Berri,  and  every  thing 
was  arranged  for  carrying  it  into  execution. 
But  the  infidelity  of  a  confederate  put  Charles 
X.  in  possession  of  the  plot,  and  it  broke 
down."* 

The  Duke  d'Angouleme,  called  the  Dau- 
phin, was  a  very  respectable  man,  without  any 
distinguishing  character.  His  wife,  disciplined 
in  the  school  not  merely  of  sorrow,  but  of  suck 
woes  as  few  mortals  have  ever  been  called  to 
endure,  had  developed  a  character  of  truly  he- 
roic mould.  The  Duchess  de  Berri  was  young, 
beautiful,  and  fascinating.  Her  courage,  en- 
thusiasm, and  love  of  adventure,  as  subsequent- 
ly displayed  in  the  eyes  of  all  Europe,  were 
perhaps  never  surpassed.  Every  generous 
*  Les  Dix  Ans  de  Louis  Philippe,  par  Louis  Blanc. 

4—14 


210  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Embarrassment  of  the  officers. 


heart  will  cherish  emotions  of  regret  in  view 
of  that  frailty  which  has  consigned  her  name 
to  reproach.  The  two  children  of  the  Duchess 
de  Berri  were  too  young  to  comprehend  the 
nature  of  the  events  which  were  transpiring. 
Even  while  the  bloody  strife  was  in  progress, 
and  the  din  of  the  conflict  reached  their  ears, 
these  two  innocent  children  were  amusing 
themselves  in  a  game  in  which  Mademoiselle 
led  the  rebels,  and  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux  at 
the  head  of  his  Eoyal  Guard  repulsed  them. 

The  cabinet  ministers,  under  the  protection 
of  the  troops,  were  in  permanent  session  at  the 
Tuileries.  Prince  Polignac,  a  thoroughly  im- 
practical man,  who  was  at  the  head  of  the  Gov- 
ernment, seems  not  at  all  to  have  comprehend- 
ed the  true  state  of  affairs.  When  General 
Marmont  sent  him  word,  on  the  evening  of  the 
28th,  that  the  troops  of  the  line  were  fraterniz- 
ing with  the  people,  he  is  reported  to  have  re- 
plied, with  extraordinary  coolness  and  simplic- 
ity, "Well,  if  the  troops  have  gone  over  to  the 
insurgents,  we  must  fire  upon  the  troops." 

Many  of  these  officers  found  themselves  in  a 
very  painful  situation,  embarrassed  by  the  ap- 
parently conflicting  claims  of  duty — fidelity  to 
their  sovereign  on  the  one  hand,  and  fidelity 


1830.]   OHAELES  X.  DETHRONED.      211 


Resignation  of  Count  de  RaouL 


to  the  rights  of  the  people  on  the  other. 
Some,  like  General  Marmont,  remained  faith- 
ful to  their  colors,  some  silently  abandoned 
their  posts,  but  refused  to  enter  the  ranks  of 
the  people  to  fight  against  their  former  com- 
rades ;  some  openly  passed  over  to  the  people 
and  aided  them  in  the  struggle,  thus  with  cer- 
tainty forfeiting  their  own  lives  should  the 
royal  troops  conquer.  The  following  letter 
from  Count  de  Eaoul  to  Prince  de  Polignac, 
resigning  his  commission,  will  give  the  reader 
some  idea  of  the  embarrassments  with  which 
these  honorable  men  were  agitated: 

"  MONSEIGNEUR, — After  a  day  of  massacres 
and  disasters,  entered  on  in  defiance  of  all 
laws,  divine  and  human,  and  in  which  I  have 
taken  part  only  from  respect  to  human  con- 
siderations, for  which  I  reproach  myself,  my 
conscience  imperiously  forbids  me  to  serve  a 
moment  longer.  I  have  given,  in  the  course 
of  my  life,  proofs  sufficiently  numerous  of  my 
devotion  to  the  king,  to  warrant  me,  without 
exposing  my  intentions  to  unjust  suspicions, 
to  draw  a  distinction  between  what  emanates 
from  him  and  the  atrocities  which  are  com- 
mitted in  his  name.  I  have  the  honor  to  re* 
quest,  monseigneur,  that  you  will  lay  before 


212  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  troops  desert 


the  king  my  resignation  of  my  commission  as 
captain  of  his  guard." 

In  the  confusion  of  those  hours  it  appears 
that  this  letter  did  not  reach  its  destination. 
M.  Polignac  writes :  "  I  never  received  this 
letter,  I  would  have  sent  it  back  to  its  author. 
In  the  moment  of  danger  no  one's  resignation 
is  accepted." 

The  dismal  night  of  the  28th  passed  quick- 
ly away,  as  both  parties  summoned  their 
mightiest  energies  for  the  death-struggle  on 
the  morrow.  The  truce  of  a  few  hours,  which 
darkness  and  exhaustion  compelled,  was  fa- 
vorable to  the  people.  I  think  it  was  Madame 
de  Stael  who  made  the  shrewd  remark  that 
"there  is  nothing  so  successful  as  success." 
The  real  victory  which  the  people  had 
achieved  not  only  inspired  the  combatants 
with  new  courage,  but  induced  thousands, 
who  had  hesitated,  to  swell  their  ranks,  and 
the  troops  of  the  line  very  generally  deserted 
the  defense  of  the  Government  and  passed 
over  to  the  people. 

Early  in  the  morning  of  the  29th  the  heroic 
little  band  of  the  Guard  stationed  at  the  Tuile- 
ries — heroic  in  their  devotion  to  discipline, 
though  unconsciously  maintaining  a  bad  cause 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.     213 


Tactics  of  General  Marmont. 


— received  a  reinforcement  of  fifteen  hundred 
infantry  and  six  hundred  cavalry.  This,  how- 
ever, did  but  little  more  than  make  up  for  the 
losses  in  killed  and  wounded  of  the  preceding 
day,  and  as  most  of  the  troops  of  the  line  had 
now  gone  over  to  the  people,  the  cause  of  the 
Government  seemed  hopeless.  As  General 
Marmont  counted  up  his  resources,  he  found 
that  he  had  but  five  thousand  effective  men 
and  eight  guns  to  defend  his  position  at  the 
Tuileries.  A  hundred  thousand  combatants, 
most  of  them  well  armed  and  disciplined,  and 
renowned  for  bravery,  surrounded  him.  Mil- 
itary men  who  may  be  familiar  with  the  local- 
ities, either  by  observation  or  from  maps,  may 
be  interested  in  seeing  how  General  Marmont 
disposed  of  his  force  to  meet  the  emergency. 

A  Swiss  battalion  occupied  the  Carrousel. 
Two  more  Swiss  battalions  were  stationed  in 
the  Louvre,  a  fortress  which  could  not  easily 
be  stormed.  Two  battalions  were  placed  in 
the  Kue  de  Rivoli,  to  guard  the  northern  en- 
trance to  the  Carrousel.  Three  battalions  of 
the  Guard  and  a  regiment  of  cavalry  occupied 
the  garden  of  the  Tuileries  and  the  spacious 
Place  de  la  Concorde,  outside  of  the  iron  rail- 
ing. Two  battalions  of  the  line,  who  had  not 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  struggle  continued. 


yet  abandoned  their  colors,  were  stationed  in 
the  Rue  Castiglione,  which  abuts  upon  the 
garden  near  its  central  northern  entrance. 

By  this  arrangement  General  Marmont,  if 
sorely  pressed,  could  rapidly  concentrate  his 
whole  force,  either  in  the  Carrousel  or  in  the 
garden  of  the  Tuileries,  where  he  could  easily 
for  some  time  hold  an  army  at  bay.  Should 
retreat  be  found  necessary,  there  was  open  be- 
fore him  the  broad  avenue  of  the  Champs  Ely- 
s^es.  The  ground  which  the  royal  troops  oc- 
cupied was  all  that  remained  under  the  con- 
trol of  the  Government.  The  whole  of  the  re- 
mainder of  Paris  was  in  possession  of  the  in- 
surgents. 

It  was  well  known  that  General  Marmont 
could  feel  but  little  sympathy  in  the  cause 
which,  in  obedience  to  his  oath,  he  felt  com- 
pelled to  defend.  The  insurgents  were  now 
pressing  the  troops  on  every  side.  An  inces- 
sant fire  of  musketry,  accompanied  by  loud 
shouts,  indicated  the  renewed  severity  with 
which  the  battle  was  beginning  to  rage.  The 
Provisional  Government,  anxious  to  arrest,  if 
possible,  the  carnage  inevitable  upon  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  struggle,  dispatched  M.  Arago, 
the  celebrated  philosopher,  who  was  an  inti- 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      215 

Interview  between  General  Marmont  and  M.  Arago. 

mate  friend  of  General  Marmont,  to  confer 
with  him  upon  the  subject.  The  philosopher 
was  introduced  to  the  warrior,  seated  upon  his 
horse  in  the  middle  of  the  Carrousel,  sur- 
rounded by  his  staff  of  officers.  The  follow- 
ing is,  in  substance,  the  conversation  which  is 
represented  as  having  taken  place  between 
them.  M.  Arago  first  urged  General  Marmont 
to  imitate  the  troops  of  the  line,  and,  with  his 
Guard,  espouse  the  cause  of  the  people,  which 
was  the  cause  of  liberty  and  justice.  The 
general  firmly  and  somewhat  passionately  re- 
plied, 

"  No !  propose  nothing  to  me  which  will 
dishonor  me." 

M.  Arago  then  urged  him  to  abandon  a  bad 
cause,  to  surrender  his  command,  retire  to  St 
Cloud,  and  return  his  sword  to  the  king,  and 
no  longer  to  fight  in  defense  of  despotic  meas- 
ures, and  against  the  people,  who  were  strug- 
gling only  for  their  rights.  The  general  re- 
plied : 

"  You  know  very  well  whether  or  not  I  ap- 
prove of  those  fatal  and  odious  ordinances. 
But  I  am  a  soldier.  I  am  in  the  post  which 
has  been  intrusted  to  me.  To  abandon  that 
post  under  the  fire  of  sedition,  to  desert  my 


216  Louis  PHILIPPE.  11830. 


Firmness  of  Marmont 


troops,  to  be  unfaithful  to  my  king,  would  be 
desertion,  flight,  ignominy.  My  fate  is  fright- 
ful. But  it  is  the  decree  of  destiny,  and  I 
must  go  through  with  it."* 

While  they  were  conversing,  the  battle  was 
still  raging  at  the  outposts  with  the  clamor  of 
shouts,  musketry,  and  booming  cannon.  An 
officer  came,  covered  with  dust,  and  bleeding 
from  his  wounds,  to  urge  that  reinforcements 
should  be  dispatched  to  one  of  the  outposts 
which  was  hotly  assailed.  "I  have  none  to 
send,"  said  the  general,  in  tones  of  sadness  and 
despair.  "  They  must  defend  themselves." 

These  two  illustrious  men,  in  heart  both  in 
sympathy,  but  by  the  force  of  circumstances 
placed  in  opposite  parties,  arrayed  in  deadly 
strife,  after  a  long  and  melancholy  interview 
separated,  with  the  kindest  feelings,  each  to 
act  his  part,  and  each  alike  convinced  that  the 
Bourbon  monarchy  was  inevitably  and  rapidly 

,  *  "The  Due  de  Raguse  found  himself  invested  with  a 
real  military  dictatorship.  His  situation  was  a  cruel  one. 
If  he  took  part  with  the  insurgents,  he  betrayed  a  king  who 
relied  upon  him.  If  he  put  so  many  mothers  in  mourning, 
without  even  believing  in  the  justice  of  his  cause,  he  com- 
mitted  an  atrocity.  If  he  stood  aloof,  he  was  dishonored. 
Of  these  three  lines  of  conduct  he  adopted  that  which  wa» 
most  fatal  to  the  people." — Lotus  BLANC. 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.     217 

Success  of  the  insurgents. 

approaching  its  end.  The  Provisional  Gov- 
ernment, so  hastily  and  imperfectly  organized, 
had  also  sent  a  deputation  to  the  ministers  as- 
sembled in  the  Tuileries.  But  Polignac  and 
his  associates  refused  them  admission.  The 
decisive  decree  was  then  passed  by  the  Provis- 
ional Government  that  the  king  and  his  min- 
isters were  public  enemies,  and  orders  were 
issued  to  press  the  royal  troops  on  every  side 
with  the  utmost  vigor. 

The  Hotel  de  Ville  became  the  head-quar- 
ters of  the  insurgents,  and  the  Provisional  Gov- 
ernment transferred  itself  there.  The  military 
government  of  Paris  was  given  to  Lafayette. 
The  royal  troops  were  speedily  driven  in  to 
the  vicinity  of  the  Louvre,  and  the  situation  of 
the  ministers  in  the  Tuileries  became  alarm- 
ing. They  decided  that  it  was  necessary  for 
them  to  retire  to  St.  Cloud.  Before  setting 
out  they  sent  for  General  Marmont,  that  they 
might  ascertain  his  means  of  defense. 

"  You  may  tell  the  king,"  said  General  Mar- 
mont, "  that,  come  what  may,  and  though  the 
entire  population  of  Paris  should  rise  up 
against  me,  I  can  hold  this  position  for  fifteen 
days  without  further  reinforcements.  This 
position  is  impregnable." 


218  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Capture  of  artillery. 


As  this  statement  was  repeated  to  the  king 
he  was  much  cheered  by  it.  The  monarchy 
was  much  stronger  in  the  provinces  than  in 
Paris.  The  populace  of  the  capital  could  do 
but  little  outside  of  its  walls.  A  few  days 
would  give  an  opportunity  to  assemble  numer- 
ous regiments  of  the  Guard  from  the  various 
positions  they  occupied  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
metropolis.  But  affairs  were  rapidly  assuming 
a  more  fatal  aspect  in  Paris  than  General  Mar- 
mont  had  deemed  possible.  The  whole  of  the 
city,  except  the  ground  held  by  the  royal 
troops  around  the  Tuileries,  was  in  the  hands 
of  the  insurgents.  An  impetuous  band  of 
students  from  the  Polytechnic  School  rushed 
upon  and  took  every  piece  of  artillery  in  the 
Eue  St.  Honore*. 

The  regiment  placed  in  the  Eue  Casti- 
glione,  to  guard  the  great  entrance  into  the 
garden  of  the  Tuileries  from  the  boulevards, 
through  the  Rue  de  la  Paix,  opened  its  ranks, 
and  the  triumphant  populace,  with  shouts 
which  rang  through  Paris,  entered  the  iron- 
railed  inclosure.  These  disasters  caused  the 
withdrawal  of  a  portion  of  the  troops  who  had 
for  some  time  been  defending  the  Louvre  from 
the  colonnade  opposite  the  Church  of  St.  Ger- 


1830.]    CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      219 


Retreat  of  the  Royalists. 


main  1'Auxerrois,  where  the  insurgents  were 
posted  in  great  strength.  Thus  encouraged, 
the  insurgents  rushed  vehemently  across  the 
street,  and  took  the  Louvre  by  storm.  Flood- 
ing the  palace  like  an  ocean  tide,  they  opened 
a  deadly  fire  from  the  inner  windows  upon  the 
Swiss  in  the  Carrousel. 

These  brave  men,  thus  assailed  where  suc- 
cessful resistance  was  hopeless,  were  thrown 
into  a  panic.  With  bullets  whistling  around 
them,  deafened  by  the  roar  of  the  battle  and 
the  shouts  of  infuriated  men,  and  seeing  their 
comrades  dropping  every  moment  upon  the 
pavement  dead  or  wounded,  they  fled  in  wild 
disorder  through  the  arch  of  the  Tuileries  into 
the  garden,  into  which,  from  the  side  gate,  as 
we  have  mentioned,  the  insurgents  were  pour- 
ing. 

All  was  lost,  and,  as  it  were,  in  a  moment. 
Such  are  the  vicissitudes  of  battle.  General 
Marmont  rushed  to  the  rear,  the  post  of  dan- 
ger and  of  honor  in  a  retreat.  He  did  every 
thing  which  skill  and  courage  could  do  to  re- 
store order,  and  succeeded  in  withdrawing  his 
little  band  into  the  grand  avenue  of  the 
Champs  Elys^es,  through  which  they  rapidly 
marched  out  of  Paris,  leaving  the  metropolis 


220  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


General  Marmont  and  the  king. 


in  the  hands  of  the  insurgents.  In  the  midst 
of  the  storm  of  death  which  swept  their  re- 
treating ranks  General  Marmont  was  the  last 
to  leave  the  garden  of  the  Tuileries.  One 
hundred  of  the  Swiss  troops,  who  had  been 
posted  in  a  house  at  the  junction  of  the  Rue 
de  Richelieu  and  the  Rue  St.  Honore,  were  un- 
fortunately left  behind.  They  perished  to  a 
man. 

Did  these  heroic  troops  do  right  in  thus 
proving  faithful  to  their  oaths,  their  colors,  and 
their  king?  Did  these  heroic  people  do  right 
in  thus  resisting  tyranny  and  contending  for 
liberty  at  the  price  of  their  blood  ?  Alas  for 
man  !  Let  us  learn  a  lesson  of  charity. 

General  Marmont  having  collected  his  bleed- 
ing and  exhausted  band  in  the  Bois  de  Bou- 
logne, where  pursuit  ceased,  galloped  across 
the  wood  to  St.  Cloud,  in  anguish  of  spirit,  to 
announce  to  the  king  his  humiliating  defeat. 

"  Sire,"  said  this  veteran  of  a  hundred  bat- 
tles, with  moistened  eyes  and  trembling  lips, 
"it  is  my  painful  duty  to  announce  to  your 
majesty  that  I  have  not  been  able  to  maintain 
your  authority  in  Paris.  The  Swiss,  to  whom 
I  intrusted  the  defense  of  the  Louvre,  seized 
with  a  sudden  panic,  have  abandoned  that  im- 


PALACE  OK  BT.  CLOUD. 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      223 


Consternation  at  St.  Cloud. 


portant  post.  Carried  away  myself  by  the 
torrent  of  fugitives,  I  was  unable  to  rally  the 
troops  until  they  arrived  at  the  arch  of  the 
fitoile,  and  I  have  ordered  them  to  continue 
their  retreat  to  St.  Cloud.  A  ball  directed  at 
me  has  killed  the  horse  of  my  aid-de-camp  by 
my  side.  I  regret  that  it  did  not  pass  through 
my  head.  Death  would  be  nothing  to  me 
compared  to  the  sad  spectacle  which  I  have 
witnessed." 

The  ministers  were  called  in.  All  were 
struck  with  consternation.  The  chateau  of 
St.  Cloud  is  but  six  miles  from  Paris.  Thou- 
sands of  men,  maddened,  savage,  ripe  for  any 
deeds  of  outrage,  might  in  an  hour  surround 
the  castle  and  cut  of  all  possibility  of  retreat. 
There  was  no  time  for  deliberation.  As  usual 
on  such  occasions,  confused  and  antagonistic 
views  were  hurriedly  offered.  M.  de  Ranville, 
who  had  the  evening  before  advised  measures 
of  compromise,  was  now  for  a  continuance  of 
the  conflict 

"  The  throne  is  overturned,  we  are  told," 
said  he ;  "  the  evil  is  great,  but  I  believe  it  is 
exaggerated ;  I  can  not  believe  that  the  mon- 
archy is  to  fall  without  a  combat.  Happen 
what  may,  Paris  is  not  France.  If,  however, 


224  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Recall  of  the  ordinances. 


the  genius  of  evil  is  again  to  prove  triumph- 
ant, if  the  legitimate  throne  is  again  to  fall,  let 
it  fall  with  honor;  shame  alone  has  no  fu- 
ture." These  sentiments  were  strongly  sup- 
ported by  the  Duke  d'Angouleme. 

The  king,  however,  either  from  a  constitu- 
tional want  of  heroism,  or  from  a  praiseworthy 
desire  to  save  France  from  the  horrors  of  a 
protracted  civil  war,  refused  to  appeal  any  lon- 
ger to  the  energies  of  the  sword.  He  hoped, 
however,  that  by  dismissing  the  obnoxious 
ministers,  and  revoking  the  ordinances,  the 
people  might  be  appeased.  A  decree  in  ac- 
cordance with  this  resolve  was  immediately 
prepared  and  signed.  A  new  ministry  was 
also  announced,  consisting  of  very  popular 
men. 

It  is  said  that  the  Duke  d'Angouleme  paced 
the  floor,  quivering  with  indignation,  as  this 
decree  was  signed,  and  that  the  discarded  min> 
isters  left  the  council -chamber  "with  tears  in 
their  eyes  and  despair  in  their  hearts."  The 
new  ordinances  were  hastily  dispatched  to  the 
Provisional  Government  at  the  Hotel  de  Yille. 
"It  is  too  late,"  was  the  reply.  "  The  throne 
of  Charles  X.  has  melted  away  in  blood." 
Some  few  of  the  members,  dreading  the  anar- 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      225 


Scenes  of  confusion. 


chy  which  might  follow  the  demolition  of  the 
throne,  urged  that  the  envoys  might  be  received, 
as  it  was  still  possible  to  come  to  an  accommo- 
dation. But  their  voices  were  drowned  by 
cries  from  all  parts  of  the  hall,  "  It  is  too  late. 
We  will  have  no  more  transactions  with  the 
Bourbons." 

It  would  only  bewilder  the  reader  to  attempt 
a  narrative  of  the  scenes  of  desperation,  recrim- 
ination, confusion,  and  dismay  which  simulta- 
neously ensued.  M.  de  Montmart,  whom  the 
king  had  appointed  in  place  of  Prince  Polig- 
nac  as  the  new  President  of  the  Council,  a  noble 
of  vast  wealth,  and  one  of  the  bravest  of  men, 
set  out  in  his  shirt-sleeves,  disguised  as  a  peas- 
ant, hoping  to  gain  access  to  the  Provisional 
Government,  and,  by  his  personal  influence,  to 
save  the  monarchy.  His  mission  was  in  vain. 
General  Marmont,  to  spare  the  useless  shed- 
ding of  blood,  entered  into  a  truce — some  said 
a  capitulation — with  the  revolutionary  forces. 
The  Duke  d'Angoul&ne,  in  his  rage,  called  the 
venerable  marshal  to  his  face  a  traitor.  In 
endeavoring  to  wrest  from  him  his  sword,  the 
duke  severely  wounded  his  own  hand.  Gen- 
eral Marmont  was  put  under  arrest ;  but  soon, 
by  the  more  considerate  king,  was  released. 


226  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Retreat  to  Versailles. 


The  king,  with  most  of  the  royal  family  and 
court,  retired  to  the  chateau  of  Trianon,  at  Ver- 
sailles, four  or  five  miles  farther  back  in  the 
country.  The  Duke  d'Angouleme  was  left  in 
command  of  such  troops  of  the  guard  and  of  the 
line  as  could  be  collected,  to  act  as  rear-guard 
at  St.  Cloud.  But  scarcely  had  Charles  X.  es- 
tablished himself  at  Trianon  ere  the  duke  pre- 
sented himself  in  the  presence  of  his  father,  with 
the  disheartening  intelligence  that  the  troops 
stationed  at  the  bridge  of  St.  Cloud  to  prevent 
the  insurgents  from  crossing  the  Seine,  had  re- 
fused to  fire  upon  them.  In  consequence,  the 
revolutionary  forces  had  taken  possession  of 
the  chateau,  and  were  preparing  to  march  upon 
Trianon. 

The  king  had  gathered  around  him  at  Tri- 
anon about  twelve  thousand  troops.  Some  of 
them  were  troops  of  the  line.  He  knew  not 
what  reliance  could  be  placed  in  their  fidelity. 
Alarm -couriers  were  continually  arriving  with 
appalling  tidings.  Men,  women,  and  boys,  in- 
flamed with  passion,  and  many  delirious  with 
brandy — on  foot,  and  in  all  sorts  of  vehicles — a 
motley  throng  of  countless  thousands — were  on 
the  march  to  attack  him.  The  king  had  not 
forgotten  the  visit  of  the  mob  of  Paris  to  his 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      227 


To  Rambouillet. 


brother  Louis  XVI.  and  family  at  Versailles — 
their  captivity — their  sufferings  in  the  dungeon 
and  on  the  scaffold.  Another  and  an  imme- 
diate retreat  was  decided  upon  to  Rambouillet, 
a  celebrated  royal  hunting -seat,  about  thirty 
miles  from  Paris.  It  was  midnight  when  the 
king  and  his  family,  in  the  deepest  dejection, 
under  escort  of  the  Royal  Guard,  ten  thousand 
strong,  reached  Rambouillet. 

The  Duke  d'Angoulerne  still  earnestly  ad- 
vocated the  most  determined  resistance.  But 
the  king,  an  old  man  who  had  already  num- 
bered his  threescore  years  and  ten,  was  thor- 
oughly disheartened.  After  a  few  hours  of 
troubled  repose  he,  on  the  following  morning, 
assembled  his  family  around  him.  and  communi- 
cated his  intention  of  abdicating  in  favor  of  his 
grandson,  the  Count  de  Chambord.  His  son, 
the  Duke  d'Angouleme,  renouncing  his  rights 
as  heir  to  the  throne,  assented  to  this  arrange- 
ment. The  king  announced  this  event  in  a  let- 
ter to  Louis  Philippe,  duke  of  Orleans,  appoint- 
ing the  duke  lieutenant-general  of  France — 
requesting  him  to  proclaim  the  accession  of  the 
Count  de  Chambord,  as  Henry  V.,  to  the  throne, 
and  authorizing  him  to  act  as  regent  during 
the  minority  of  the  king. 


228  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Abdication. 


The  act  of  abdication — drawn  -up  infor- 
mally as  a  letter  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans — con- 
tained the  following  expressions : 

"  I  am  too  deeply  distressed  by  the  evils  that 
afflict,  or  that  may  seem  to  impend  over  my 
people,  not  to  have  sought  a  means  to  prevent 
them.  I  have,  therefore,  resolved  to  abdicate 
the  crown  in  favor  of  my  grandson.  The 
dauphin  (the  Duke  d'Angouleme),  who  par- 
ticipates in  my  sentiments,  likewise  renounces 
his  rights  in  favor  of  his  nephew.  You  will 
therefore  have,  in  your  quality  of  lieutenant- 
general  of  the  kingdom,  to  cause  to  be  pro- 
claimed the  accession  of  Henry  V.  to  the  crown. 
You  will,  furthermore,  take  all  measures  that 
befit  you  to  regulate  the  forms  of  the  Govern- 
ment during  the  minority  of  the  new  king. 

"  I  renew  to  you,  my  cousin,  the  assurance 
of  the  sentiments  with  which  I  am  your  affec- 
tionate cousin,  CHARLES." 

But  in  the  mean  time  an  army  of  uncounted 
thousands  was  hastily  organized  in  Paris  to 
march  upon  Rambouillet  and  drive  the  king 
out  of  France.  This  formidable  array  of  de- 
termined men  was  crowded  into  carriages,  cab- 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      229 


M.  Barrot  and  the  king. 


riolets,  omnibuses,  and  vehicles  of  every  kind, 
and  was  pushed  forward  as  rapidly  as  possible. 
General  Pajol  commanded  the  expedition. 
General  Excelmans  was  intrusted  with  the  ad- 
vance-guard. This  motley  mass  was  trundled 
along,  singing  the  "Marseillaise"  and  other  rev- 
olutionary songs,  and  presenting  far  more  the 
aspect  of  a  mob  than  that  of  an  army.  In  the 
position  in  which  the  king  was  placed,  with 
troops  upon  many  of  whom  he  could  place  but 
little  reliance,  they  were  the  more  to  be  dread- 
ed. Three  commissioners  were  sent  in  advance 
of  the  revolutionary  troops  to  demand  of  the 
king  an  unqualified  resignation  of  the  crown 
for  himself  and  his  descendants.  The  king  re- 
ceived them  with  calmness  and  dignity. 

"  What  do  you  wish  with  me  ?"  he  said.  "  I 
have  arranged  every  thing  with  the  Duke  of 
Orleans,  my  lieutenant-general  of  the  king- 
dom." 

M.  Odillon  Barrot  replied,  "If  the  king  would 
avoid  involving  the  kingdom  in  unheard-of 
calamities  and  a  useless  effusion  of  blood,  it  is 
indispensable  that  his  majesty  and  his  family 
should  instantly  leave  France.  There  are 
eighty  thousand  men  who  have  issued  from 
Paris,  ready  to  fall  on  the  royal  forces." 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Departure  for  Cherbourg. 


The  king  took  Marshal  Maison,  another  of 
the  commissioners,  aside  into  the  embrasure  of 
a  window,  and  said  to  him,  "  Marshal  Maison, 
you  are  a  soldier  and  a  man  of  honor.  Tell 
me,  on  your  word  of  honor,  is  the  army  which 
has  marched  out  of  Paris  against  me  really 
eighty  thousand  strong?" 

"  Sire,"  the  marshal  replied,  "  I  can  not  give 
you  the  number  exactly ;  but  it  is  very  nu- 
merous, and  may  amount  to  that  force." 

"Enough,"  said  the  king;  "I  believe  you, 
and  I  consent  to  every  thing  to  spare  the 
blood  of  my  Guard." 

Orders  were  immediately  issued  for  the 
prompt  departure  of  the  court  for  Cherbourg, 
there  to  embark  for  some  foreign  land.  In  a 
few  hours  the  mournful  procession  was  in 
movement.  The  long  cortege  of  carriages  was 
accompanied  by  several  regiments  of  the 
Guard.  Sad  indeed  must  have  been  the  emo- 
tions of  the  inmates  of  those  carriages  as  they 
commenced  their  journey  from  the  splendors 
of  royalty  to  the  obscurity  of  exile.  Slowly 
this  funereal  procession  of  departed  power  was 
seen  winding  its  way  through  the  distant  prov- 
inces of  the  realm,  to  find  in  foreign  lands  3 
refuge  and  a  grave. 


1830.]  CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      231 


St.  Maintenon. 


The  first  night  they  stopped  at  Maintenon, 
where  the  illustrious  family  of  Noailles  re- 
ceived the  royal  fugitives  with  sympathy  and 
generous  hospitality,  in  one  of  the  most  an- 
cient and  splendid  country-seats  of  the  king- 
dom. Here,  the  next  morning,  the  king  took 
leave  of  the  greater  part  of  his  Guard.  He 
reserved  for  his  escort  but  a  few  hundred  se- 
lect troops,  with  six  pieces  of  cannon.  Gen- 
eral Marmont,  in  whom  the  king  reposed  im- 
plicit trust,  was  placed  in  command  of  this 
little  band,  which  was  to  guard  the  illustrious 
refugees  to  the  coast. 

The  parting  of  the  King  from  that  large  por- 
tion of  the  Guard  from  whom  he  here  sepa- 
rated presented  a  touching  spectacle.  Loyalty 
with  these  soldiers  was  a  religious  principle. 
In  these  hours  of  disaster,  whatever  might 
have  been  the  faults  of  their  fallen  sovereign, 
they  forgot  them  all.  They  were  drawn  up  in 
military  array  along  the  noble  avenue  of  the 
park.  As  the  royal  cortege  passed  between 
them  they  presented  arms,  silent  in  their  grief, 
while  many  of  these  hardy  veterans  were  in 
tears.  The  king  himself  was  for  the  moment 
quite  unmanned,  and,  bowing  his  head,  sobbed 
aloud. 


232  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Mournful  journey. 


Twelve  days  were  occupied  in  the  slow 
journey  to  Cherbourg.  It  was  deemed  neces- 
sary to  avoid  all  the  large  towns,  and  to  take 
unfrequented  paths,  that  they  might  not  be 
arrested  in  their  progress  by  any  popular  up- 
rising. Before  reaching  Cherbourg  the  king 
had  the  mortification  of  hearing  that  the  Or- 
leans throne  had  been  reared  upon  the  ruins 
of  the  Bourbon  throne.  During  the  whole  of 
this  sad  journey  General  Marmont,  whose  life 
had  been  so  full  of  adventure  and  vicissitude, 
rode  on  horseback  by  the  side  of  the  carriage 
of  the  king.  Many  of  the  most  illustrious 
noblemen  and  most  distinguished  ladies  of 
France,  faithful  to  their  principles  and  their 
king  in  the  hour  of  misfortune,  added  by  their 
presence  to  the  mournful  pageantry  of  the 
cavalcade.  The  peasants  even  were  awed  by 
this  spectacle  of  fallen  grandeur.  Though 
they  gathered  in  crowds  around  the  carriages 
in  the  villages  through  which  they  passed  the 
night,  no  word  of  insult  was  offered.  In  si« 
lence  they  gazed  upon  the  scene,  and  not  un- 
frequently  tears  were  seen  to  moisten  eyes 
quite  unused  to  weep. 

When  the  cavalcade  reached  Valognes,  a 
few  miles  from  Cherbourg,  as  all  danger  was 


1830.]  CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.       235 


Parting  with  the  Guard. 


passed,  the  king  decided  to  dismiss  the  re- 
mainder of  the  Guard.  Gathering  around  him 
the  officers,  and  six  of  the  oldest  soldiers  of 
each  company  composing  his  escort,  he  re- 
ceived from  them  the  royal  banners  of  the 
elder  house  of  Bourbon,  which  could  no  long- 
er be  unfurled  in  France.  The  Duke  and  the 
Duchess  d'Angoul&ne,  and  the  Duchess  de 
Berri,  with  her  daughter,  and  her  son,  the 
Duke  of  Bordeaux,  stood  by  his  side.  "With 
a  trembling  voice,  which  was  finally  broken  by 
sobs,  the  king  said : 

"  I  receive  these  standards,  and  this  child  " 
(pointing  to  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux)  "  will  one 
day  restore  them  to  you.  The  names  of  each 
of  you,  inscribed  on  your  muster-rolls,  and  pre- 
served by  my  grandson,  will  remain  registered 
in  the  archives  of  the  royal  family,  to  attest 
forever  my  misfortunes,  and  the  consolation  I 
have  received  from  your  fidelity." 

This  was  one  of  time's  tragedies — the  de- 
thronement of  a  dynasty.  There  are  but  few 
who  will  not,  in  some  degree,  appreciate  the 
sublimity  of  the  scene.  All  present  were  in 
tears,  and  loud  sobs  were  heard.  The  king 
and  his  family  then  laid  aside  all  the  insignia 
of  royalty,  and  assumed  the  dress  more  appro- 


236  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 


Louis  seeks  an  asylum. 


priate  to  exiles.  The  king  also  wrote  to  the 
King  of  England  and  to  the  Emperor  of  Aus- 
tria, announcing  his  dethronement,  and  solicit- 
ing an  asylum  in  each  of  their  realms. 

It  would  seem,  however,  that  Charles  X., 
who  twice  before  had  been  driven  into  exile, 
did  by  no  means  relinquish  the  idea  of  regain- 
ing the  crown  for  his  family.  In  taking  leave 
of  Prince  Polignac,  who  more  than  any  one 
else  was  responsible  for  the  obnoxious  ordi- 
nances, he  said : 

"  I  recollect  only  your  courage.  I  do  not 
impute  to  you  our  misfortunes.  Our  cause 
was  that  of  God,  of  the  throne,  and  of  the 
people.  Providence  often  proves  its  servants 
by  suffering,  and  defeats  the  best  designs  for 
reasons  superior  to  what  our  limited  faculties 
can  discern.  But  it  never  deceives  upright 
consciences.  Nothing  is  yet  lost  for  our 
house.  I  go  to  combat  with  one  hand,  and  to 
negotiate  with  the  other.  Retire  behind  the 
Loire,  where  you  will  find  an  asylum  from  the 
vengeance  of  the  people  in  the  midst  of  my 
army,  which  has  orders  to  assemble  at  Char- 
tres." 

"Charles  X.,"  writes  Louis  Blanc,  "was 
tranquil.  The  aspect  of  the  dauphine  in  tears, 


1830.]  CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      237 


Journey  to  Cherbourg. 


of  his  woe-begone  courtiers,  and  of  the  two 
children  of  the  Duchess  de  Berri,  who,  in  their 
ignorance,  found  amusement  in  the  novelty  of 
every  thing  about  them — to  all  this  lie  was  in- 
sensible, or  at  least  resigned.  But  the  sight  of 
a  bit  of  tricolored  ribbon,  or  a  slight  neglect 
of  etiquette,  was  enough  to  excite  his  petu- 
lance. It  was  necessary,  in  the  small  town  of 
L'Aigle,  to  have  a  square  table  made,  accord 
ing  to  court  usage,  for  the  dinner  of  a  mon- 
arch who  was  losing  an  empire.  Thus  he 
showed,  combined  in  his  person,  that  excess  of 
grandeur  and  of  littleness  which  is  acquired 
from  the  practice  of  royalty." 

The  journey  to  Cherbourg  was  sad  and  sol- 
emn. The  two  princesses,  the  Duchess  d'An- 
goulSme  and  the  Duchess  de  Berri,  walked 
when  the  weather  was  fine.  Their  dress  was 
very  much  neglected,  because  their  attendants 
had  not  been  able  to  bring  away  linen  or 
clothes.  A  grave  and  pensive  expression  sat 
on  the  faces  of  the  beholders  wherever  the 
cortege  passed.  Some  officers  presented  them- 
selves on  the  road,  bowing  in  homage  to  ex 
piring  royalty.  "  Gentlemen,"  said  the  king, 
"  keep  those  worthy  sentiments  for  that  child, 
who  alone  can  save  you  all ;"  and  he  pointed 


238  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Arrival  at  Cherbourg. 


to  the  little  flaxen-haired  head  of  the  Duke  of 
Bordeaux,  at  the  window  of  a  carriage  follow- 
ing his  own. 

When  the  melancholy  cortege,  consisting  of 
a  long  train  of  carriages,  reached  the  cliffs  of 
Cherbourg,  they  beheld  the  ocean  spread  out  in 
its  apparently  illimitable  expanse  before  them. 
Here  they  halted.  For  a  moment  dismay 
filled  their  hearts ;  for  the  advance  couriers 
came  galloping  back  with  the  tidings  that  a 
numerous  band  of  armed  insurgents,  a  tumult- 
uous mob,  with  shoutings  like  the  roarings  of 
the  sea,  were  advancing  to  assail  the  royal  par- 
ty. The  king  and  his  son,  the  Duke  d'An- 
gouleme,  hastily  stepped  from  their  carriages, 
and,  mounting  horses,  reached  Cherbourg  in 
safety.  The  ladies  and  children  were  not  mo- 
lested save  from  the  fright  which  they  experi- 
enced. 

An  immense  crowd  thronged  the  streets  of 
Cherbourg,  raising  revolutionary  cries,  while 
the  tricolor  flags  seemed  to  float  from  every 
window.  The  port  is  separated  from  the  town 
by  a  strong,  circular  iron  railing.  The  marine 
gate-way  was  guarded  by  some  grenadiers,  who 
closed  is  as  soon  as  the  royal  carriages,  with 
the  small  accompanying  guard,  had  entered, 


1830.]   CHARLES  X.  DETHRONED.      239 


Embarkation. 


Within  this  inclosure  no  tricolor  flag  was  seen, 
no  word  of  reproach  was  uttered. 

Thousands  crowded  to  the  railing,  eager- 
ly looking  through  the  bars  upon  the  trage- 
dy which  was  transpiring.  The  royal  party 
alighted  at  a  small  bridge,  carpeted  with  blue 
cloth.  The  dauphine,  who  had  passed  through 
so  many  scenes  of  woe,  nearly  fainted  as  with 
trembling  steps  she  entered  the  ship  which 
was  to  bear  her  again  to  exile,  and  an  exile 
from  which  death  alone  could  release  her. 
The  Duchess  de  Berri  assumed  an  air  of  indig- 
nation and  defiance,  characteristic  of  her  Nea- 
politan blood.  The  little  Duke  of  Bordeaux, 
now  called  the  Count  de  Chambord,  in  behalf 
of  whom  Charles  X.  had  abdicated,  and  who 
was  consequently  now  regarded  by  all  the 
court  party  as  their  lawful  sovereign,  was  car- 
ried in  the  arms  of  M.  de  Dumas,  who  was  very 
apprehensive  lest  the  bullet  of  some  assassin 
might  pierce  him.  The  king  sufficiently  con- 
trolled his  feelings  to  appear  calm  as  ever. 

The  deposed  monarch  and  his  despairing 
household  stood  upon  the  deck  of  the  vessel  as 
it  was  towed  by  a  steamer  out  of  the  harbor. 
As  the  sails  were  unfurled,  and  filled  with  a 
favoring  breeze,  they  sadly  watched  the  reced 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


A  sad  farewell. 


ing  shores  of  France.  There  was  no  parting 
salute.  It  was  a  funereal  scene.  Even  the 
most  ardent  Loyalists  could  not  raise  a  cheer, 
A  few  hours'  sail  conveyed  the  silent,  melan 
choly  court  to  England,  and  thence  to  Scot- 
land, where  an  asylum  was  found  in  the  an- 
cient palace  of  Holyrood,  immortalized  as  the 
scene  of  the  sufferings  of  Mary  Queer*  of  Scots. 
Thus  fell  the  throne  of  Charles  X. 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  241 

Birth  of  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux,  now  called  Count  de  Chambord. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY. 

UPON  the  sudden  overthrow  of  the  throne 
of  Charles  X.  by  a  revolution  in  the 
streets  of  Paris,  four  parties  appeared,  strug- 
gling for  the  crown.  Charles,  as  he  fled  with 
his  court  in  terror  from  France,  threw  back  a 
decree  of  abdication  in  favor  of  his  grand- 
son, the  Count  de  Chambord,  then  entitled  the 
Duke  de  Bordeaux.  This  child,  who  still 
lives,  was  then  about  ten  years  old.  The 
birth  of  this  child,  whom  the  Legitimists  call 
Henry  V.,  and  whom  they  regard  as  the  legit- 
imate heir  to  the  ancient  throne  of  the  Bour- 
bons, was  hailed  with  rejoicing  throughout 
France. 

It  is  recorded  that  quite  a  dramatic  scene  oc- 
curred at  his  birth.  His  grandfather,  Charles 
X.,  hastened  to  the  chamber,  and,  seizing  the 
new-born  babe  in  his  arms,  exclaimed,  with 
delight,  "  Here  is  a  fine  Duke  de  Bordeaux  I 
He  is  born  for  us  alll"  He  then  gave  the 

child  9  frw  droiva  of  the  wine  of  Pau,  with 

4— Hi 


242  Louis  PHILIPPE. 

Henry  V.  and  the  Regency. 

which  tradition  says  that  the  aged  father  of 
Jeanne  d'Albret  anointed  the  lips  of  her  child, 
Henry  IV.,  before  the  babe  was  allowed  to 
place  his  mouth  to  his  mother's  breast. 

The  heroic  mother  of  the  young  duke,  the 
Duchess  de  Berri,  whose  subsequent  fate  was 
so  deplorable,  said  to  the  king,  the  father  of 
her  departed  husband,  "Sire,  I  wish  I  knew 
the  song  of  Jeanne  d'Albret,  that  every  thing 
might  be  done  here  as  at  the  birth  of  Henry 
IV." 

The  advocates  of  the  ancient  regime,  the 
Legitimist  party,  many  of  them  illustrious  in 
rank  and  intellect,  rallied  around  the  banner 
of  young  Henry,  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux.  They 
probably  had  the  sympathies  of  those  Euro- 
pean dynasties  which,  by  force  of  arms,  had 
replaced  the  Bourbons  upon  that  throne  of 
France  from  which  the  Revolution  of  1789 
had  expelled  them.  In  accordance  with  the 
decree  of  abdication  which  Charles  X.  had  is- 
sued, the  Legitimists  wished  the  young  Duke 
of  Bordeaux  to  be  recognized  as  sovereign, 
with  the  title  of  Henry  V. ;  and  the  Duke  of 
Orleans,  Louis  Philippe,  to  be  accepted  as  re- 
gent, during  the  minority  of  the  child. 

Next  came  the  Republican  party,  formida- 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  243 


Strength  of  the  Republicans. 


ble  in  physical  strength,  in  Paris  and  in  other 
cities.  The  Republicans  had  roused  the  mass- 
es, filling  the  streets  with  a  hundred  thousand 
armed  workmen;  they  had  inspired  the  con- 
flict, demolished  the  throne,  achieved  the  rev- 
olution; but  they  had  no  leader  capable  of 
organizing  and  controlling  the  tumultuous  pop- 
ulace. The  moneyed  men,  remembering  the 
Reign  of  Terror,  were  afraid  of  them.  All 
through  the  rural  districts,  the  peasantry,  in- 
fluenced by  the-  priests,  could  not  endure  the 
idea  of  a  republic. 

The  bankers  in  Paris,  the  moneyed  class, 
men  of  large  resources  and  influence,  were  the 
leaders  of  the  third,  or  Orleans  party,  so  call- 
ed. These  men  were  opposed  to  the  aristoc- 
racy of  rank,  but  were  in  favor  of  the  aristoc- 
racy of  wealth.  They  had  ample  means  and 
very  able  leaders.  They  wished  for  a  consti- 
tutional monarchy,  modelled  after  the  aristo- 
cratic institutions  of  England.  They  would 
place  upon  the  throne  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  a 
Bourbon,  one  of  the  richest  nobles  in  Europe. 
He  would  be  the  legitimate  heir  to  the  throne 
should  the  young  Duke  of  Bordeaux  die.  The 
Duke  of  Orleans,  with  his  vast  wealth,  would 
be  the  fitting  representative  of  the  moneyed 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Arguments  of  the  Orleanists. 


class.  The  Orleanists  could  very  effectually 
appeal  to  the  moderate  men  of  the  Legitimist 
and  Republican  parties  in  favor  of  a  compro- 
mise in  the  interest  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 
To  the  first  they  said  : 

"Unless  you  accept  the  Duke  of  Orleans, 
there  is  danger  that  the  Republicans  will  gain 
the  ascendency,  and  then  our  time-honored 
monarchy  will  be  overthrown."  To  the  Re- 
publicans they  said  :  "  Unless  you  consent  to 
this  compromise,  which  gives  us  a  constitu- 
tional monarchy,  under  a  citizen  king,  there  is 
danger  that  another  coalition  of  the  powers 
of  Europe  will  inundate  France,  and,  after 
years  of  blood  and  woe,  the  old  regime  of  the 
Bourbons  will  be  again  forced  upon  us." 

In  speaking  to  the  Republicans,  they  empha- 
sized the  declaration  that  Louis  Philippe  would 
be  a  citizen  king.  When  speaking  to  the  Le- 
gitimists, they  laid  stress  upon  the  fact  that 
the  Duke  of  Orleans  would  be  the  legitimate 
sovereign,  should  the  frail  child  die  who  alone 
stood  between  him  and  the  throne. 

There  was  a  fourth  party — the  Imperial  or 
Napoleonist.  It  existed  then  in  rather  a  la- 
tent state,  though  in  a  condition  to  be  roused, 
as  subsequent  events  proved,  to  marvellous 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  245 

Embarrassment  of  Louis  Philippe. 

life  by  an  electric  touch.  The  renown  of  the 
great  emperor  filled  the  land.  The  memorials 
of  his  reign  were  everywhere.  He  was  en- 
throned in  the  hearts  of  the  French  people,  as 
monarch  was  never  enthroned  before.  But 
the  Bourbons  had  taken  especial  care  to  ban- 
ish from  France  every  one  who  bore  his  name, 
and  to  obliterate,  as  far  as  possible,  every  me- 
morial of  his  wonderful  reign.  The  revolu- 
tion had  burst  upon  Paris  with  almost  the  sud- 
denness of  the  lightning's  flash.  There  was 
no  one  there  who  could  speak  in  behalf  of  the 
iescendants  of  him  who  had  so  lately  filled 
the  world  with  his  renown,  and  who  was  still 
enshrined,  with  almost  idolatrous  worship,  in 
so  many  hearts. 

From  the  above  it  will  be  perceived  that  the 
chances  were  greatly  in  favor  of  the  Orleans 
party.  Louis  Philippe  was  placed  in  perhaps 
as  embarrassing  and  painful  a  position  as  man 
ever  occupied.  He  was  far  advanced  in  life, 
with  property  amounting,  it  is  said,  to  about 
one  hundred  millions  of  dollars.  Revolution- 
ary storms  had,  at  one  time,  driven  him  into 
the  extreme  of  poverty.  He  had  experienced 
the  severest  sufferings  of  persecution  and  ex- 
ile.. Now.  in  his  declining  years,  happy  amidst 


246  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Indecision. 


the  splendors  of  the  Palais  Royal,  and  in  his 
magnificent  retreat  at  Neuilly,  he  was  anxious 
for  repose. 

Should  he  allow  himself  to  be  placed  at  the 
head  of  the  obnoxious,  utterly -defeated  Legiti- 
mist party,  as  regent  during  the  minority  of 
the  Duke  of  Bordeaux?  It  was  scarcely  pos- 
sible that  he  could  maintain  his  position. 
Eepublicans,  Orleanists,  and  Imperialists,  all 
would  combine  against  him.  The  army  could 
not  be  relied,  upon  to  sustain  him.  Ruin 
seemed  inevitable — not  only  the  confiscation 
of  his  property,  but  probably  also  the  loss  of 
his  head. 

Should  he  allow  himself  to  be  made  king 
by  the  bankers  in  Paris?  He  would  be  an 
usurper ;  false  to  his  own  principles  of  legiti- 
macy, to  those  principles  which  had  brought 
him  into  sympathy  with  the  allied  dynasties 
of  Europe  in  those  long  and  bloody  wars  by 
which  they  had  forced  rejected  legitimacy 
back  upon  France. 

The  little  Duke  of  Bordeaux  and  his  grand- 
father, Charles  X.,  were  his  near  blood  rela- 
tives. He  had  received  from  the  royal  family 
great  favors — the  restoration  of  his  vast  do- 
mains. He  would  be  morally  guilty  of  the 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  24? 


The  pressure  of  events. 


greatest  ingratitude  in  assuming  the  attitude 
of  their  antagonist,  interposing  himself  be- 
tween the  lawful  heir  and  the  crown.  Should 
he  stand  aloof  from  these  agitations,  and  take 
no  part  in  the  movement  of  affairs,  then  an- 
archy or  a  Republic  seemed  the  inevitable  re- 
sult In  either  case,  he,  as  a  rich  Bourbon, 
with  an  amount  of  wealth  which  endangered 
the  state,  would  be  driven  from  France  and 
his  property  confiscated. 

But  affairs  pressed.  Scarcely  a  moment 
could  be  allowed  for  deliberation.  The  crisis 
demanded  prompt  and  decisive  action.  The 
embarrassment  of  the  duke  is  painfully  con- 
spicuous in  the  interviews  which  ensued. 
Anxiously  he  paced  the  floor  of  his  library  at 
Neuilly,  bewildered  and  vacillating. 

There  was  a  rich  banker  at  Paris  by  the 
name  of  Lafitte.  He  called  a  meeting  at  his 
house,  of  Guizot,  Thiers,  and  other  leading 
journalists.  There  they  decided  to  unite  upon 
the  Duke  of  Orleans,  and  to  combine  immedi- 
ately, without  a  moment's  delay,  all  possible  in. 
fluences  in  Paris,  to  place  the  sceptre  of  power 
in  his  hands,  before  the  dreaded  Eepublicans 
should  have  the  opportunity  to  grasp  it.  It 
•vras  the  30th  of  July,  the  last  of  the  three 


248  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 

Interview  between  the  baron  and  the  banker. 

days*  conflict.  The  thunders  of  the  battle  had 
scarcely  ceased  to  echo  through  the  streets  of 
the  metropolis. 

Baron  Glandeves,  governor  of  the  Tuileries, 
and  of  course  a  warm  partisan  of  Charles  X., 
who  had  probably  heard  a  rumor  of  this  meet- 
ing, called  upon  M.  Lafitte,  and  the  following 
conversation  is  reported  as  having  taken  place 
between  them : 

"  Sir,"  said  the  baron  to  the  banker,  "  you 
have  now  been  master  of  Paris  for  twenty -four 
hours.  Do  you  wish  to  save  the  monarchy?" 

"  Which  monarchy  ?"  inquired  Lafitte,  "  the 
monarchy  of  1789,  or  the  constitutional  mon- 
archy of  1814  ?" 

"  The  constitutional  monarchy,"  the  baron 
replied. 

"To  save  it,"  rejoined  Lafitte,  "only  one 
course  remains;  and  that  is  to  crown  the  Duke 
of  Orleans." 

"  The  Duke  of  Orleans  I"  exclaimed  the  bar- 
on, "  what  are  his  titles  to  the  crown  ?  That 
boy,  the  son  of  Napoleon,  whom  Vienna  has 
educated,  can  at  least  invoke  the  memory  of 
his  father's  glory.  It  must  be  admitted  that 
Napoleon  has  written  his  annals  in  characters 
of  fire  upon  the  minds  of  men.  But  the  Duke 


X830.J  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  249 

Interview  between  the  baron  and  the  banker. 

of  Orleans  —  what  prestige  surrounds  him? 
What  has  he  done?  How  many  of  the  peo- 
ple know  his  history,  or  have  even  heard  his 
name?" 

"In  the  fact  of  his  want  of  renown,"  replied 
the  banker,  "  I  see  a  recommendation.  Hav- 
ing no  influence  over  the  imagination,  he  will 
be  the  less  able  to  break  away  from  the  re- 
straints of  a  constitutional  monarch.  His  pri- 
vate life  is  irreproachable.  He  has  respected 
himself  in  his  wife,  and  has  caused  himself  to 
be  revered  and  loved  by  his  children." 

"Mere  domestic  virtues," rejoined  M. Glan- 
dev&s,  "are  not  to  be  recompensed  by  a  crown. 
Are  you  ignorant  that  he  is  accused  of  approv- 
ing of  the  vote  of  his  father  for  the  death  of 
Louis  XYI. ;  that  in  our  dark  days  he  asso- 
ciated himself  with  projects  to  exclude  forever 
from  the  throne  the  legitimate  heirs ;  that  dur- 
ing the  Hundred  Days  he  preserved  a  myste- 
rious inaction ;  that,  since  1815,  while  pretend- 
ing to  be  the  humble  servant  of  the  court,  he 
has  been  the  secret  fomenter  of  all  intrigues  ? 
Louis  XVIII.  restored  to  him  his  vast  estates. 
Charles  X.,  by  a  personal  request  to  the  Cham- 
bers, secured  them  to  him,  by  legal  and  irre- 
fragable rights,  and  conferred  upon  him  the 


250  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 

Interview  between  the  baron  and  the  banker. 

title  of  royal  highness,  which  he  so  long  cov- 
eted. How  can  he  now,  thus  burdened  with 
kindnesses  from  the  elder  branch  of  the  Bour- 
bons, seize  upon  their  inheritance?" 

"It  is  not  for  the  personal  interest  of  the 
duke,"  replied  M.  Lafitte,  "  that  we  wish  to 
place  him  upon  the  throne,  but  for  the  salva- 
tion of  the  country.  This  alone  can  save  us 
from  anarchy,  which  otherwise  seems  inevita- 
ble. I  do  not  ask  whether  the  situation  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  is  painful  to  his  feelings,  but 
simply  whether  his  accession  to  the  throne  is 
desirable  for  France.  What  prince  is  more 
liberal  in  his  political  sentiments,  or  more 
free  from  those  prejudices  which  have  ruined 
Charles  X.?  And  where  can  we  find  any  can- 
didate for  the  throne  who  combines  so  many 
advantages?  And  what  course  can  you  pro- 
pose preferable  to  that  of  placing  the  crown  on 
his  head?" 

"  If  you  believe  Charles  X.  guilty,"  rejoined 
the  baron,  "at  least  you  will  admit  that  the 
Duke  de  Bordeaux  is  innocent.  Let  us  pre- 
serve the  crown  for  him.  He  will  be  trained 
up  in  good  principles.  Does  Lafayette  very 
sincerely  desire  a  Republic  ?" 

"  He  would  wish  for  it,"  Lafitte  replied,  "  if 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  251 

Plan  of  the  Legitimists. 

he  were  not  afraid  of  too  searching  a  convul- 
sion." 

"  Well,  then,"  said  the  baron,  "  let  a  council 
of  regency  be  established.  You  would  take 
part  in  it  with  Lafayette." 

M.  Lafitte  replied,  "  Yesterday  that  might 
have  been  possible;  and,  had  the  Duchess  de 
Bern — separating  her  cause  from  that  of  the 
old  king — presented  herself,  with  her  young 
son,  holding  a  tricolor  in  her  hand — " 

"A  tricolor  I"  exclaimed  the  baron,  in  aston- 
ishment, interrupting  him — "A  tricolor!  Why, 
it  is,  in  their  eyes,  the  symbol  of  every  crime. 
Bather  than  adopt  it,  they  would  suffer  them- 
selves to  be  brayed  in  a  mortar." 

"  Under  these  circumstances,"  inquired  La- 
fitte, "  what  is  it  you  have  to  propose  to  me  ?" 

The  prompt  reply  was,  "  Eespect  the  divine 
right  of  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux — proclaim  him 
sovereign,  as  Henry  V. — intrust  the  regency, 
during  his  minority,  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans." 

This  was  the  plan  of  the  Legitimists.  Tal- 
leyrand also  cherished  the  same  view.  The 
Republicans  were  by  no  means  inclined  to 
enthrone  another  Bourbon  in  the  place  of 
Charles  X.  When  M.  Thiers  and  M.  Mignet, 
•with  others  from  the  office  of  the  Nationale,  ap- 


252  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1880. 


Anxiety  of  Lafayette. 


peared  among  the  crowd  distributing  printed 
slips  of  paper  eulogizing  the  Duke  of  Orleans, 
they  were  received  with  hisses.  When  it  was 
announced  to  the  combatants  of  the  Passage 
Dauphin  that  there  was  a  plot  concocting  to 
raise  the  Duke  of  Orleans  to  the  throne,  there 
was  one  unanimous  burst  of  rage,  with  the 
simultaneous  exclamation,  "  If  that  be  the  case, 
the  battle  is  to  be  begun  again,  and  we  will  go 
and  cast  fresh  balls.  No  more  Bourbons :  we 
will  have  none  of  them."  M.  Leroux,  who  had 
witnessed  this  scene,  hurried  to  the  Hotel  de 
Ville  to  warn  Lafayette  of  the  danger.  He 
assured  Lafayette  that  the  Eepublican  spirit 
which  Lafayette  had  evoked  now  menaced 
Paris  and  France  with  anarchy,  and  that  the 
attempt  to  place  another  Bourbon  on  the  throne 
would  be  the  signal  of  a  new  and  terrible  conflict. 
Lafayette — who  was  seated  in  a  large  arm- 
chair— seemed,  for  a  moment,  stunned  and 
speechless.  A  messenger  came  in  to  inform 
him  that  the  Duke  of  Chartres — the  eldest  son 
of  the  Duke  of  Orleans — had  been  taken  cap- 
tive, and  that  a  riotous  band  was  surging 
through  the  streets  shouting,  "A  prince  is 
taken  I  Let  us  go  and  shoot  him  1"  Almost  by 
miracle  the  young  duke  escaped  deatu. 


1830.J  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  253 

Danger  of  anarchy. 

The  peril  of  anarchy  was  hourly  increasing. 
There  was  not  a  moment  to  be  lost  in  organ- 
izing, if  possible,  some  stable  government.  The 
millions  in  the  rural  districts  would  not  accept 
a  Eepublic  organized  by  the  populace  in  Paris. 
The  men  of  property,  and  the  friends  of  order 
generally,  thought  that  their  only  chance  of 
averting  confusion  and  ruin  was  to  rally  in  sup- 
port of  the  Orleans  dynasty.  Thus  the  Or- 
leans party  rapidly  increased  among  the  more 
wealthy  and  reputable  portion  of  the  citizens. 
The  leading  journals  espoused  their  cause. 
Nearly  all  the  journals,  trembling  in  view  of  the 
threatening  anarchy,  earnestly  rallied  around 
that  banner.  Beranger,  the  most  popular  poet 
in  France — notwithstanding  his  profound  ad- 
miration of  Napoleon,  which  was  breathed  forth 
in  so  matiy  of  his  soul-stirring  songs — gave  the 
Orleanists  the  aid  of  his  all-powerful  pen. 

The  following  proclamation  in  favor  of  tHe 
Duke  of  Orleans  was  issued : 

"Charles  X.  can  never  return  to  Paris;  he 
has  shed  the  blood  of  the  people.  A  Eepub- 
lic would  expose  us  to  horrible  divisions;  it 
would  involve  us  in  hostilities  with  Europe. 
The  Duke  of  Orleans  is  a  prince  devoted  to 
the  cause  of  the  Eevolution.  The  Duke  of 


254  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Orleanist  proclamation. 


Orleans  has  never  fought  against  us.  The 
Duke  of  Orleans  was  at  Jemappes.  The  Duke 
of  Orleans  is  a  citizen  king.  The  Duke  of  Or- 
leans has  carried  the  tricolor  flag  under  the 
enemy's  fire.  The  Duke  of  Orleans  can  alone 
carry  it  again.  We  will  have  no  other  flag. 
The  Duke  of  Orleans  does  not  declare  himself. 
He  waits  for  the  expression  of  our  wishes. 
Let  us  proclaim  those  wishes  and  he  will  ac- 
cept the  charter,  as  we  have  always  under* 
stood  and  desired  it.  It  is  from  the  French  peo- 
ple he  will  hold  the  crown." 

"This  proclamation,"  says  Louis  Blanc,  "was 
drawn  up  with  great  art.  It  repeated  the 
name  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  again  and  again,, 
in  order  that  this  name,  little  known  to  the 
people,  might  nevertheless  be  deeply  imprint- 
ed on  its  memory.  By  talking  of  the  tricolor 
flag  and  Jemappes  to  a  multitude  who  trou- 
bled themselves  little  about  political  forms,  it 
engaged,  on  behalf  of  the  elect  of  the  bour- 
geoisie, that  national  feeling  that  had  been  ex- 
alted to  so  high  a  pitch  by  the  victories  of  the 
Republic  and  the  Empire,  Lastly,  it  invoked 
the  sovereignty  of  the  people,  the  better  to  de- 
stroy it — an  old  trick  of  courage-lacking  ambi- 
tion.'' 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY,  255 


Activity  of  the  Legitimists. 


The  above  proclamation  was  placarded 
throughout  Paris,  and  was  simultaneously 
published  in  the  three  leading  journals,  the 
Nationale,  the  Courier  Frangais,  and  the  Com- 
merce, which  were  severally  edited  by  the  dis- 
tinguished journalists,  Thiers,  Mignet,  and  La- 
requy.  Another  renowned  editor,  M.  Carrel, 
was  dispatched  to  IJouen,  to  gain  that  impor- 
tant city  to  the  Orleans  cause. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Legitimists,  headed  by 
Chateaubriand  and  Talleyrand,  were  not  idle. 
These  men  were  not  merely  ambitious  parti- 
sans. It  can  not  be  doubted  that  they  believed 
that  the  interests  of  France  would  be  best  pro- 
moted by  respecting  the  rights  of  the  Duke  of 
Bordeaux,  under  the  lieutenant-generalship  of 
the  Duke  of  Orleans. 

The  successful  insurrectionists,  composed 
mainly  of  the  ^Republican  and  Democratic  par- 
ties in  Paris,  had  their  head-quarters  at  the 
Hotel  de  Villa  Here  they  hastily  organized 
what  they  called  a  Provisional  Government. 
General  Lafayette  presided  over  their  delibera- 
tions. The  embarrassment  of  affairs  was  such, 
that  the  illustrious  marquis  was  in  a  state  of 
cruel  anxiety.  In  principle  he  was  a  Eepub- 
iican.  And  yet  he  could  see  no  possibility  of 


256  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Attempts  at  compromise. 


evolving  a  stable  Republic  from  the  chaos  into 
which  the  political  world  was  then  plunged. 
After  much  deliberation,  the  Eepublican  lead- 
ers at  the  Hotel  de  Ville  sent  General  Du- 
bourg,  as  a  commissioner,  to  the  Orleanists  as 
eembled  at  M.  Lafitte's,  to  confer  respecting  a 
compromise  and  union  of  parties.  But  already 
the  Orleanists  felt  so  strong  that  they  refused 
even  to  admit  him  to  their  presence. 

The  Orleanists  were  very  anxious,  from  fear 
that  the  Duke  of  Orleans  might  accede  to  the 
proposition  of  the  Legitimists,  and  proclaim 
the  Duke  of  Bordeaux  king,  and  himself,  in 
accordance  with  the  decree  of  Charles  X.,  lieu- 
tenant-general of  France,  and  regent  during 
the  minority  of  the  duke.  This  would  be  in 
accordance  with  the  forms  of  law,  and  the  only 
legal  course.  Such  a  step  would  give  the  Le- 
gitimists immense  vantage-ground,  from  which 
they  could  only  be  driven  by  another  bloody 
conflict. 

To  guard  against  this  peril,  it  was  decided 
to  send  a  delegation,  consisting  of  M.  Thiers, 
M.  Scheffer,  and  M.  Sebastiani,  to  the  rural 
chateau  of  Louis  Philippe,  at  Neuilly,  which 
was  but  a  short  distance  from  Paris,  to  offer 
to  him  the  crown.  Should  he  refuse  it,  they 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  257 


Fears  of  the  Orleanists. 


were  directed  to  arrest  him  and  convey  him  to 
a  place  of  safety,  and  hold  him  in  close  cus- 
tody. Louis  Blanc,  in  his  "Dix  Ans  de  Louis 
Philippe"  has  given  a  minute  account  of  this 
interview.  It  would  seem  that  Louis  Philippe, 
in  an  agony  of  suspense,  though  informed  of 
the  approach  of  the  delegation,  was  not  pre- 
pared to  meet  them.  To  avoid  the  interview, 
he  fled  to  Rancy,  leaving  his  wife  and  sister 
behind  him. 

The  Duchess  of  Orleans  received  the  gentle- ' 
men.    Pale  and  trembling,  she  listened  to  the 
offer  of  a  crown  to  her  husband.     Then  with 
extreme  emotion  she  replied  to  M.  Scheffer, 
the  speaker  of  the  party  : 

"  How  could  you  undertake  such  a  mission  ? 
That  M.  Thiers  should  have  charged  himself 
with  it,  I  can  understand.  He  little  knew  us. 
But  that  you,  who  have  been  admitted  to  our 
intimacy — who  knew  us  so  well — ah  I  we  can 
never  forgive  it." 

Just  then  Louis  Philippe's  sister,  Madame 
Adelaide,  followed  by  Madame  de  Montjoie, 
entered  the  room.  Fully  comprehending  the 
object  of  the  mission,  and  the  dangers  which 
surrounded  them,  Madame  Adelaide  said, 

"Let  them  make  my  brother  a  president^ 

4—17 


f58  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Singular  interview. 


a  commander  of  the  National  Guard,  any 
thing,  so  that  they  do  not  make  him  a  pro 
scribed."  ; 

"  Madame,"  responded  M.  Thiers,  "  it  is  a 
throne  which  we  come  to  offer  him." 

"  But  what,"  rejoined  the  princess,  "  will  Eu- 
rope think  ?  Shall  he  seat  himself  on  the 
throne  from  which  Louis  XVI.  descended  to 
mount  the  scaffold?  What  a  panic  will  it 
strike  in  all  royal  houses !  The  peace  of  the 
world  will  be  endangered." 

"  These  apprehensions,  madame,"  M.  Thiers 
replied,  "are  natural,  but  they  are  not  well- 
founded.  England,  full  of  the  recollection  of 
the  banished  Stuarts,  will  applaud  an  event  of 
which  her  history  furnishes  an  example  and  a 
model.  As  to  the  absolute  monarchies,  far 
from  reproaching  the  Duke  of  Orleans  for  fix- 
ing on  his  head  a  crown  floating  on  the  storm, 
they  will  approve  a  step  which  will  render  his 
elevation  a  barrier  against  the  unchained  pas- 
sions of  the  multitude.  There  is  something 
great  and  worth  saving  in  Prance.  And  if  it 
be  too  late  for  legitimacy,  it  is  not  for  a  con- 
stitutional throne.  After  all,  there  remains  to 
the  Duke  of  Orleans  only  a  choice  of  danger. 
In  the  present  posture  of  affairs,  to  fly  from 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  259 


Agitation  of  the  ducal  family. 


the  possible  dangers  of  royalty  is  to  face  a  Be* 
public  and  its  inevitable  tempests." 

These  forcible  words  of  the  sagacious  states- 
man produced  a  deep  impression  upon  the 
strong  and  well-balanced  mind  of  Madame  Ad 
elaide.  She  was  fully  capable  of  appreciating 
all  their  import.  She  gave  virtual  assent  to 
them  by  saying,  "  I  am  a  child  of  Paris :  I  am 
willing  to  intrust  myself  to  the  Parisians." 
It  was  decided  to  send  immediately  for  the 
duke.  A  messenger  soon  reached  him,  and  he 
set  out  on  horseback,  accompanied  by  M.  Mon- 
tesquiou,  for  Paris.  Still  his  irresolution,  ti- 
midity, and  bewilderment  were  so  great  that, 
before  reaching  the  city,  his  heart  misgave  him, 
and,  turning  his  horse,  he  galloped  with  the  ut- 
most speed  back  to  Rancy.  Alison,  in  depict- 
ing these  scenes,  says,  with  a  severity  which 
our  readers  will  probably  think  that  the  re- 
corded facts  scarcely  warrant, 

"  He  had  neither  courage  enough  to  seize 
the  crown  which  was  offered  to  him,  nor  virtue 
enough  to  refuse  it.  He  would  gladly  have 
declined  the  crown  if  he  had  been  sure  of  re- 
taining his  estates.  The  most  powerful  argu- 
ment for  accepting  it  was,  that  by  so  doing  he 
could  save  his  property." 


260  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Strange  crisis  of  affairs. 


The  strange  crisis  of  affairs  was  such  that, 
while  the  population  of  France  was  over  thirty 
millions,  a  few  bankers  in  Paris,  without  con- 
sulting the  voice  of  the  people,  were  about  to 
impose  upon  them  a  government  and  a  king ; 
and  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  peril  of  the 
nation  was  such  that  many  of  the  purest  and 
noblest  men  approved  of  these  measures.  The 
majority  of  the  members  of  the  Chamber  of 
Deputies  were  gained  over  to  this  cause; 
and  even  the  members  of  the  House  of  Peers 
were  so  overawed  by  the  menacing  aspect  of 
the  excited  populace,  that  they  were  disposed 
to  fall  in  with  the  movement. 

The  deputies  were  assembled  at  the  Hotel 
Bourbon,  waiting  to  receive  the  report  of  the 
delegation  which  had  been  sent  to  offer  the 
crown  to  Louis  Philippe.  It  is  said  that  there 
was  but  one  man,  M.  Hyde  de  Neuville,  who 
occupied  the  benches  reserved  for  the  advo- 
cates of  the  old  royalty.  There  were  proba- 
bly, however,  others  in  favor  of  the  Duke  of 
Bordeaux,  who  absented  themselves.  While 
thus  in  session,  the  rumor  came  that  a  body 
of  royalist  troops  from  Eouen  were  marching 
upon  Paris,  and  that  their  cannon  were  already 
planted  upon  the  heights  of  Montmartre,  which 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  261 


Appalling  rumor. 


commanded  the  city.  In  the  midst  of  the  con- 
sternation which  this  communication  created, 
the  deputies  returned  from  Neuilly,  with  a  re- 
port of  their  favorable  reception  by  the  family 
3f  Louis  Philippe. 

Immediately,  though  with  some  dissenting 
voices,  the  following  resolution  was  adopted, 
and  transmitted  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans : 

"  The  deputies  in  Paris  deem  it  essential  to 
implore  his  royal  highness  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans to  repair  immediately  to  Paris,  to  exer- 
cise the  functions  of  lieutenant-general  of  the 
kingdom,  and  also  to  resume,  in  accordance 
with  the  universal  wish,  the  tricolor  flag." 

Meanwhile  the  peers  had  met  in  their  hall, 
in  the  palace  of  the  Luxembourg.  Chateau- 
briand was  then  in  the  plenitude  of  his  re- 
nown as  a  writer,  an  orator,  a  statesman. 
Crowds  of  young  men,  in  admiration  of  his 
genius,  were  ready  enthusiastically  to  follow 
his  leading.  This  distinguished  man  fully  re- 
alized the  true  state  of  affairs — the  difficulties 
involved  in  whatever  course  they  should  at- 
tempt to  pursue.  For  some  time  he  sat  apart, 
silent  and  melancholy,  apparently  in  gloomy 
thought.  Suddenly  he  rose,  and,  in  deliberate, 
solemn  tones,  said  • 


262  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  ultra  Democrats. 


"Let  us  protest  in  favor  of  the  ancient  mon- 
archy. If  needs  be,  let  us  leave  Paris.  But 
wherever  we  may  be  driven,  let  us  save  the 
king,  and  surrender  ourselves  to  the  trust  of 
a  courageous  fidelity.  If  the  question  come 
to  the  salvation  of  legitimacy,  give  me  a 
pen  and  two  months,  and  I  will  restore  the 
throne." 

Scarcely  had  he  concluded  these  bold,  proud 
words,  when  a  delegation  presented  itself  from 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  soliciting  the  co-op- 
eration of  the  peers  in  placing  the  crown  upon 
the  brow  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans.  It  was  soon 
manifest  that  but  few  of  the  peers  were  pre- 
pared to  surrender  themselves  to  martyrdom 
by  following  the  courageous  but  desperate 
councils  of  Chateaubriand. 

The  ultra  democratic  party,  dissatisfied  with 
the  moderate  tone  assumed  by  Lafayette  and 
his  associates  at  the  Hotel  de  Yille,  formed  a 
new  organization  at  a  hall  in  the  Eue  St.  Ho* 
nore*.  They  were  bold,  determined  men,  ready 
to  adopt  the  most  audacious  resolutions,  and  to 
shed  their  blood  like  water,  in  street  fights,  to 
maintain  them.  They  were  numerous,  and  with 
nervous  gripe  held  the  arms  they  had  seized; 
but  they  had  no  commander.  There  was  not 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  263 


The  demand  for  a  plebiscite. 


a  man  in  their  ranks  who  could  secure  the  sup. 
port  of  a  respectable  party  throughout  France. 
They  had  no  pecuniary  resources— they  con- 
sisted merely  of  a  tumultuous  band  of  success- 
ful insurrectionists,  with  no  one  of  sufficient 
character  and  prominence  upon  whom  even 
they  could  unite  to  recognize  as  their  leader. 
The  eloquent  and  universally  popular  Be'ran- 
ger,  advocating  in  all  his  glowing  verse  the 
rights  of  the  people,  with  other  agents  of  the 
Orleans  cause,  repaired  to  this  democratic  gath- 
ering, to  win  them  over,  if  possible,  to  their 
side.  Angrily  ihe  Democrats  rejected  all  such 
propositions.  A  .ferocious  debate  ensued,  which 
was  terminated  by  a  pistol-shot  from  an  enraged 
opponent,  which  wounded  an  Orleanist  orator 
severely  in  the  cheek.  It  was  no  longer  safe, 
in  that  presence,  to  urge  the  claims  of  Louis 
Philippe.  His  advocates,  as  speedily  as  possi- 
ble, left  the  hall. 

The  Democrats,  as  this  wing  of  the  Repub- 
lican party  may  be  called,  who  had  broken 
from  their  more  moderate  brethren,  who  were 
assembled,  under  the  presidency  of  Lafayette, 
at  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  thus  left  to  themselves, 
sent  a  deputation  to  that  body,  with  the  fol- 
lowing well-expressed  remonstrance  against  or- 


264  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Tumultuous  scenes. 


ganizing  a  government  without  consulting  the 
voice  of  the  French  people : 

"The  people  yesterday  reconquered  their 
rights  at  the  expense  of  their  blood.  The 
most  precious  of  their  rights  is  that  of  choosing 
their  form  of  government.  Till  this  is  done, 
no  proclamation  should  be  issued  announcing 
any  form  of  government  as  adopted.  A  pro- 
visional representation  of  the  nation  exists: 
let  it  continue  till  the  wishes  of  the  majority 
of  Frenchmen  are  known." 

The  spacious  Place  de  Greve,  in  front  of  the 
Hotel  de  Ville,  was  crowded  with  an  excited, 
surging,  tumultuous  mass,  anxiously  awaiting 
the  issues  of  each  passing  hour.  The  demo- 
ocratic  delegation  elbowed  their  way  through 
the  crowd,  and  were  courteously  received  by 
Lafayette,  in  behalf  of  the  Provisional  Govern- 
ment. As  Lafayette  was  addressing  them,  a 
gentleman  entered,  M.  Sussy,  a  commissioner 
from  the  fugitive  king,  Charles  X.,  with  a  proc- 
lamation which  Charles  had  issued,  hoping  to 
conciliate  the  enraged  people  by  revoking  the 
ordinances  which  had  roused  them  to  insurrec- 
tion, dismissing  the  obnoxious  ministers  who 
had  recommended  those  ordinances,  and  ap- 
pointing a  new  cabinet  of  more  popular  men. 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  265 

Resolutions  passed  by  the  Republicans. 

It  was  too  late  for  compromise.  The  same 
proclamation  had  been  sent  to  the  deputies,  but 
they  refused  to  receive  it.  Upon  the  announce- 
ment of  the  mission  of  M.  Sussy,  the  indignant 
cry  arose  from  the  Kepublicans,  "No I  no! 
away  with  him :  we  will  have  nothing  more  to 
do  with  the  Bourbons."  So  great  was  the  fury 
excited  that  it  was  with  difficulty  that  a  brawny 
Republican,  M.  Bastide,  was  prevented  from 
throwing  M.  Sussy  out  of  the  window.  By  the 
interposition  of  Lafayette,  he  was  withdrawn, 
in  the  midst  of  a  frightful  tumult,  to  another 
room.  Under  the  influence  of  the  hostile  feel- 
ings thus  aroused,  a  series  of  resolutions  were 
passed,  declaring  that  France  would  have  no 
more  of  royalty — that  the  representatives  of 
the  people  alone  should  make  the  laws,  to  be 
executed  only  by  a  temporary  president. 

It  will  be  seen  that  these  resolutions  were  in 
direct  opposition  to  the  views  of  those  who 
wished  to  re-erect  the  monarchy  and  to  place 
Louis  Philippe  upon  the  throne.  But  these 
resolutions  were  passionately  adopted,  by  the 
most  radical  portion  of  the  party,  in  the  midst 
of  a  scene  of  the  wildest  tumult.  They  were 
by  no  means  unanimously  accepted.  The  more 
moderate  of  the  Republicans,  with  Lafayette  at 


266  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 

Arrogance  of  the  Polytechnic  pupils. 

their  head,  in  view  of  the  agitation  hourly  aug- 
menting in  the  streets,  in  view  of  the  insupera- 
ble difficulties,  obvious  to  every  well-inform- 
ed man,  of  establishing  a  stable  Eepublic  in  a 
realm  where  a  large  majority  of  the  population 
were  opposed  to  a  Eepublic,  and  trembling  in 
view  of  the  anarchy  with  which  all  France 
was  menaced,  and  conscious  that  a  Republic 
would  excite  the  hostility  of  every  surrounding' 
throne — were  already  strongly  inclined  to  effect 
a  union  with  the  Orleans  party,  under  a  consti- 
tutional monarchy. 

In  various  parts  of  the  city  there  were  ex- 
cited gatherings,  adopting  all  sorts  of  revolu- 
tionary resolutions,  and  sending  delegations  to 
the  Hotel  de  Ville  with  instructions,  petitions, 
and  threats.  The  students  of  the  Polytechnic 
School — who  had  distinguished  themselves  in 
the  bloodiest  scenes  of  the  street-fight  with  the 
troops  of  Charles  X. — sent  a  committee  to  the 
Hotel  de  Ville  with  a  military  order,  to  which 
they  demanded  an  official  signature.  The  ap- 
propriate officer,  M.  Lobau,  refused  to  sign  it. 
"You  recoil,  do  you?"  said  the  determined 
young  man  who  presented  the  ordinance. 
"  Nothing  is  so  dangerous,  in  revolutions,  as  to 
recoil :  I  will  order  you  to  be  shot!" 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  267 

Increasing  anxiety  and  peril. 

"To  be  shot!"  was  the  indignant  reply. 
41  Shoot  a  member  of  the  Provisional  Govern- 
ment!" 

The  young  man  drew  him  to  the  window, 
pointed  to  a  well-armed  band  of  a  hundred 
men,  who  had  fought  desperately  the  day  be- 
fore: "There,"  said  he,  "are  men  who  would 
shoot  God  Almighty,  were  I  to  order  them  to 
do  so."  The  order  was  signed  in  silence. 

Such  occurrences  gave  new  impulse  to  the 
inclinations  of  Lafayette  and  the  more  moder- 
ate of  the  Republican  party  towards  the  Or- 
leanists,  who  were  deliberating  in  the  salons  of 
M.  Lafitte.  Charles  X.,  who  had  fled  from  St. 
Cloud  with  his  family  and  with  some  of  the  most 
devoted  of  his  followers,  while  these  scenes 
were  transpiring,  was  still  in  France,  at  but  a 
few  leagues  from  Paris,  at  the  head  of  twelve 
thousand  veteran  troops.  Should  the  Duke  of 
Orleans  escape  and  join  him,  and  rally  the  rural 
portion  of  the  people  in  defense  of  Legitimacy, 
and  in  support  of  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux,  re- 
sults might  ensue  appalling  to  the  boldest  im- 
agination. As  hour  after  hour  passed  away, 
and  the  duke  did  not  appear  in  Paris,  the  anx- 
iety in  the  crowded  salons  of  M.  Lafitte  was  ter- 
rible. Orleanists  and  Eepublicans  were  alike 


268  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 


The  panic. 


imperilled.  The  re-establishment  of  the  old 
regime  would  inevitably  consign  the  leaders 
of  both  these  parties,  as  traitors,  to  the  scaf- 
fold. Democratic  cries  were  resounding,  more 
and  more  loudly,  through  the  streets.  Pow- 
er was  fast  passing  into  the  hands  of  the  mob. 
Should  the  Duke  of  Orleans  fail  his  party, 
there  was  no  one  else  around  whom  they  could 
rally,  and  their  disastrous  defeat  was  inev- 
itable. 

The  hours  were  fast  darkening  into  despair. 
Messengers  were  anxiously  sent  to  the  Pa- 
lais Eoyal,  the  sumptuous  city  residence  of  the 
duke,  to  ascertain  if  he  had  arrived.  No  ti- 
dings could  be  heard  from  him.  The  domestics 
seemed  to  be  packing  up  the  valuables  in  prep- 
aration for  removal.  The  utter  failure  of  B^- 
ranger  and  his  associates  to  gain  the  co-opera- 
tion of  the  Democrats  was  reported.  The  de- 
cisive resolution  adopted  at  the  Hotel  de  Ville 
was  known.  All  seemed  lost.  There  was  noth- 
ing before  the  eye  but  a  frightful  vision  of  an- 
archy and  bloodshed.  A  general  panic  seized 
all  those  assembled  in  the  apartments  of  Lafitte, 
and  there  was  a  sudden  dispersion.  It  was 
near  midnight ;  but  three  persons  were  left — • 
Lafitte,  Adolphe  Thibodeaux,  and  Benjamin 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  269 

Two  imperialists. 

Constant.  A  few  moments  of  anxious  conver- 
sation ensued. 

"  What  will  become  of  us  to-morrow  ?"  sadly 
inquired  Lafitte. 

"  We  shall  all  be  hanged,"  replied  Benjamin 
Constant,  in  the  calm  aspect  of  despair. 

In  this  crisis  of  affairs,  matters  threatened  to 
become  still  more  involved  by  two  energetic 
young  men,  M.  Ladvocat  and  M.  Dumoulin, 
who  proposed  to  bring  forward  the  claims  of 
the  Empire.  The  name  of  Napoleon  then  pro- 
nounced in  the  streets,  and  the  unfurling  of  the 
eagle -crowned  banner  under  any  recognized 
representative  of  his  renown,  would,  perhaps, 
have  called  a  party  into  being  which  would 
instantly  have  overridden  all  others.  This 
peril  was  adroitly  averted  by  the  sagacity  of 
M.  Thiers  and  M.  Mignet.  By  their  powerful 
persuasion  they  induced  M.  Ladvocat  to  desist 
from  the  attempt.  The  other  young  man,  who 
was  found  inflexible  in  his  resolve,  they  lured 
into  a  room  in  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  where  they 
caused  him  to  be  arrested  and  imprisoned. 

In  the  following  terms  Louis  Blanc  describes 
this  singular  event: 

"  While  every  one  was  seeking  to  realize  his 
wishes,  a  few  voices  only  were  heard  uttering 


270  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Testimony  of  Louis  Blanc. 


the  name  of  the  emperor  in  a  city  that  had  so 
long  echoed  to  that  sound.  Two  men  without 
influence,  military  reputation,  or  celebrity  of 
any  kind,  MM.  Ladvocat  and  Dumoulin,  con- 
ceived, for  a  while,  the  idea  of  proclaiming 
the  Empire.  M.  Thiers  easily  persuaded  one 
of  them  that  fortune  gives  herself  to  him  who 
hastens  to  seize  her.  The  other  appeared, 
dressed  as  an  orderly-officer,  in  the  great  hall 
of  the  Hotel  de  Ville.  But,  being  politely  re- 
quested  by  M.  Carbonel  to  pass  into  an  adjoin- 
ing room,  he  was  there  locked  up  and  kept 
prisoner. 

"This  is  one  of  those  curiosities  of  history  the 
key  of  which  is  found  in  the  grovelling  nature 
of  most  human  ambition.  The  son  of  Napo- 
leon was  far  away.  For  those  who  were  actu- 
ated by  vulgar  hopes,  to  wait  was  to  run  the 
risk  of  losing  those  first  favors  which  are  al- 
ways easiest  to  obtain  from  a  government  that 
has  need  to  win  forgiveness  for  its  accession. 
Nevertheless,  Napoleon's  memory  lived  in  -the 
hearts  of  the  people.  But  what  was  requisite 
to  the  crowning  of  the  immortal  victim  of  Wa- 
terloo in  the  first-born  of  his  race? — That  an 
old  general  should  appear  in  the  streets,  draw 
his  sword,  and  shout,  Vive  Napoleon  III 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  271 


The  Empire. 


"But  no;  General  Gourgaud  alone  made 
some  tentative  efforts.  Napoleon,  besides,  had 
pigmied  all  mm$s  round  his  own.  The  impe- 
rial regime  had  kindled  in  the  plebeians  he  had 
abruptly  ennobled  a  burning  thirst  for  place 
and  distinction.  The  Orleanist  party  recruit- 
ed itself  among  all  those  whose  promptitude 
to  revive  the  Empire  needed,  perhaps,  but  one 
flash  of  hardihood,  a  leader,  and  a  cry.  Of  all 
the  generals  whose  fortunes  were  of  imperial 
growth,  Subervic  alone  gave  his  voice  for  a 
Republic  in  M.  Lafitte's  saloons — at  least  he 
was  the  only  one  that  was  remarked.  Thus 
all  was  over  as  regards  Napoleon.  And  some 
little  time  after  this,  a  young  colonel,  in  the 
service  of  Austria,  died  beyond  the  Ehine — 
the  frail  representative  of  a  dynasty  whose  last 
breath  passed  away  with  him."* 

When  Louis  Blanc  penned  these  lines  he 
little  supposed  that  but  a  few  years  would  pass 
away  ere  the  almost  unanimous  voice  of  the 
French  people  would  call  Napoleon  III.  to  the 
throne  of  France,  and  that  under  his  energetic 
sway  France  would  enjoy  for  twenty  years 
prosperity  at  home  and  influence  abroad  which 

*  "The  History  of  Ten  Years,"  by  Louis  Blanc,  voL  L, 
p.  187. 


272  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 


The  mob  at  Neuilly. 


almost  eclipsed  the  splendors  of  the  first  Em- 
pire. 

In  the  mean  time  an  agitated  crowd  poured 
out  through  the  gates  of  Paris,  and,  invading 
Neuilly,  surrounded  the  chateau,  intending  to 
seize  the  Duke  of  Orleans  and  carry  him  into 
the  city.  But  he,  as  we  have  mentioned,  had 
retired  to  Rancy.  The  leaders  of  this  multi- 
tude, professing  to  be  a  deputation  from  the 
Chamber  of  Deputies,  demanded  to  see  the 
duchess,  and  informed  her  that  they  should 
take  her  and  her  children  as  hostages  to  the 
city,  and  there  keep  them  until  the  duke  should 
appear  in  Paris.  The  duchess,  terrified  in  view 
of  the  peril  to  which  she  and  her  children  would 
be  exposed  in  the  hands  of  an  ungovernable 
mob,  wrote  to  her  husband  entreating  him  to 
return  immediately. 

Thus  influenced,  the  duke  resolved  to  repair 
to  Paris.  The  streets  were  thronged  with  an 
excited  mob,  who  would  surely  assassinate 
him  should  he  be  recognized.  The  peril  of 
his  family  overcame  his  constitutional  timid- 
ity. In  disguise,  accompanied  by  three  per- 
sons only,  who  were  also  disguised,  this  reluc- 
tant candidate  for  one  of  the  most  brilliant  of 
earthly  crowns,  a  lit.t.Je  before  midnight,  set  out 


1830.]  STRUGGLES  or  DIPLOMACY.  273 


The  duke  visits  Paris. 


on  foot  from  his  rural  retreat;  and,  entering 
Paris,  traversed  the  thronged  streets,  with  Ke- 
publican  cries  resounding  everywhere  about 
him.  In  several  instances  the  mob,  little  aware 
whom  they  were  assailing,  compelled  him  to 
respond  to  the  cry.  Upon  reaching  his  sump- 
tuous palace,  sometime  after  midnight,  he  threw 
himself,  in  utter  exhaustion,  upon  a  couch,  and 
sent  the  welcome  announcement  to  his  friends 
of  his  arrival.  M.  de  Montmart,  one  of  the 
most  prominent  of  the  Orleans  party,  immedi- 
ately called.  He  found  the  duke  in  a  state  of 
extreme  agitation,  bathed  in  sweat,  undressed, 
and  covered  only  with  a  light  spread. 

The  duke  gave  vehement  utterance  to  his 
perplexities  and  alarm.  He  declared  his  devo- 
tion to  the  principles  of  Legitimacy,  and  his 
inalienable  attachment  to  his  friends  and  rela- 
tives of  the  elder  branch  of  the  Bourbon  fam- 
ily. He  remonstrated  against  the  cruelty  of 
placing  him  in  the  false  position  of  their  antag- 
onist, saying,  "  I  would  rather  die  than  accept 
the  crown."  Seizing  a  pen,  he  wrote  a  letter  to 
Charles  X.,  full  of  protestations  of  loyalty  and 
homage.  M.  de  Montmart  concealed  this  epis- 
tle in  the  folds  of  his  cravat,  and  it  was  con- 
veyed to  the  fugitive  king. 
4—18 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Scene  in  the  Palais  Royal. 


This  epistle  was  probably  intended  only  to 
be  a  forcible  expression  of  the  extreme  reluc- 
tance with  which  Louis  Philippe  yielded  to 
those  influences  which  seemed  morally  to  com- 
pel him  to  accept  the  crown.  Charles  X.  was 
cruelly  deceived  by  the  letter.  He  interpret- 
ed it  to  signify  that  the  Duke  of  Orleans  would 
remain  firm  in  his  allegiance  to  the  dynasty 
which  had  been  driven  by  successful  insurrec- 
tion from  Paris. 

At  an  early  hour  the  next  morning,  a  del- 
egation from  the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  with 
General  Sebastian!  at  its  head,  arrived  at  the 
Palais  Royal.  The  agitations  of  the  hour 
were  such  that,  without  waiting  for  an  an- 
nouncement, they  broke  into  the  presence  of 
the  duke  with  the  entreaty  that  he  would  ac- 
cept from  them  the  lieutenant-generalcy  of 
the  kingdom,  which  was  merely  the  stepping- 
stone  to  the  throne.  The  duke  was  still  very 
undecided,  or,  to  save  appearances,  feigned  to 
be  so.  The  deputies  assured  him  that  the  cri- 
sis was  so  imperious,  that  not  only  the  des- 
tinies of  France,  but  also  his  own  life,  were 
probably  dependent  upon  his  accepting  the 
appointment.  The  duke  implored  a  few  more 
moments  for  private  reflection,  and  retired  to 


1830.J  STRUGGLES  OF  DIPLOMACY.  277 


Advice  of  Talleyrand. 


his  cabinet  with  General  Sebastiani,  who  was 
then  hurriedly  dispatched  to  the  hotel  of  M. 
Talleyrand  in  the  Rue  St.  Florentin.  Talley- 
rand had  been  one  of  the  firmest  supporters 
of  Legitimacy.  Louis  Philippe  sought  his 
advice.  The  wily  statesman,  who  had  lived 
through  so  many  revolutions,  had  not  yet  left 
his  bed-chamber,  and  was  dressing.  He,  how- 
ever, promptly  returned  the  sealed  answer, 
"  Let  him  accept." 

The  duke  hesitated  no  longer.  Eeturning 
to  the  Deputies,  he  announced  his  decision. 
The  most  vigorous  action  was  now  required. 
A  proclamation  to  the  inhabitants  of  Paris 
was  immediately  drawn  up  in  the  name  of 
Louis  Philippe,  and  which  was  unanimously 
agreed  to  by  the  delegation,  announcing  that, 
in  obedience  to  the  wishes  of  the  Deputies, 
he  had  assumed  the  office  of  lieutenant-general 
of  France.  At  the  same  time,  the  illustrious 
writer,  M.  Guizot,  was  intrusted  with  the  duty 
of  preparing  a  more  full  exposition  of  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  Orleanist  party,  which  was  to  be 
signed  by  ninety  -  one  of  the  Deputies.  The 
proclamation  issued  by  Louis  Philippe,  and 
which  was  simply  expanded  in  the  longer  one 
drawn  up  by  M.  Guizot,  was  as  follows: 


278  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Proclamation  of  Louis  Philippe. 


"INHABITANTS  OF  PARIS,— The  Deputies, 
at  this  moment  assembled  in  Paris,  have  ex- 
pressed their  desire  that  I  should  betake  my- 
self to  this  capital  to  exercise  there  the  func- 
tions of  lieutenant-general  of  the  kingdom.  I 
have  not  hesitated  to  come  and  partake  of 
your  dangers,  to  place  myself  in  the  midst  of 
this  heroic  population,  and  use  all  my  endeav- 
ors to  preserve  you  from  civil  war  and  an- 
archy. On  entering  the  city  of  Paris,  I  wore 
with  pride  those  glorious  colors  you  have  re- 
sumed, and  which  I  had  myself  long  carried. 

"The  Chambers  are  about  to  assemble. 
They  will  consult  on  the  means  of  securing 
the  reign  of  the  laws  and  the  maintenance  of 
the  rights  of  the  nation.  A  charter  shall  be 
henceforth  a  true  thing. 

"Louis  PHILIPPE  D'OKLEANS.'' 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  279 


The  duke  at  the  Hotel  de  Ville. 


CHAPTER  IX. 
Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE. 

BY  the  movement  chronicled  in  the  previ- 
ous chapter,  the  Duke  of  Orleans  became 
virtually  dictator.  Could  his  dictatorship  be 
maintained,  it  was  of  course  a  death-blow  to 
all  other  parties.  The  Eepublican  party,  weak 
as  it  was  if  we  consider  the  whole  of  France, 
was  strong  in  the  streets  of  Paris.  It  was  a 
matter  of  great  moment  to  try  to  conciliate 
the  leaders  of  that  party.  It  was  soon  evi- 
dent that  this  would  be  no  easy  matter.  The 
proclamation  of  the  duke  was  very  angrily  re- 
ceived in  the  streets.  Loud  mutterings  were 
heard.  Those  who  were  distributing  the  proc- 
lamation were  fiercely  assailed,  and  one  of  the 
agents  narrowly  escaped  with  his  life. 

At  length  the  bold  resolve  was  adopted  for 
the  Duke  of  Orleans  to  go  in  person  to  the 
Hotel  de  Yille,  accompanied  by  an  escort  of 
Deputies.  A  throng  of  Orleanists  surrounded 
the  Palais  Eoyal  and  cheered  the  duke  as  he 
came  out.  As  the  procession  advanced,  insult- 


280  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Discordant  cries. 


ing  shouts  began  to  assail  their  ears.  The 
duke  was  on  horseback.  The  Place  de  Greve 
was  thronged  with  Republicans.  Angry  out- 
cries greeted  him.  "He  is  a  Bourbon,"  some 
shouted  ;  "  away  with  him !  We  will  have 
nothing  to  do  with  him." 

Benjamin  Constant  and  Beranger  mingled 
with  the  crowd,  doing  every  thing  in  their 
power  to  appease  and  calm  it.  It  was  feared, 
every  moment,  that  some  pistol-shot  would 
strike  the  duke  from  his  horse.  His  counte- 
nance was  pale  and  care-worn ;  but  there  was 
no  visible  perturbation.  Having  with  diffi- 
culty forced  his  way  through  the  angry  crowd, 
Louis  Philippe  alighted  from  his  horse  and  as- 
cended the  stairs.  Lafayette,  who  was  already 
in  heart  in  sympathy  with  the  Orleanist  move- 
ment, came  forth  courteously  to  meet  him,  and 
conducted  him  to  the  great  hall  of  the  palace. 
There  was  here  a  very  excited  interview,  the 
more  passionate  of  the  Orleanists  and  of  the 
Republicans  coming  very  near  to  blows.  But 
Lafayette  and  the  most  illustrious  men  of  the 
liberal  party,  seeing  no  other  possible  way  of 
rescuing  France  from  anarchy,  now  openly  es- 
poused the  cause  of  Louis  Philippe. 

Lafayette  took  the  Duke  of  Orleans  by  tM 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  281 


Decisive  action  of  Lafayette. 


hand,  and  led  him  out  upon  a  balcony,  where 
they  were  in  view  of  the  vast  multitude 
swarming  in  the  vacant  space  below.  The 
devotion  of  the  marquis  to  popular  rights  was 
universally  known.  He  could  not,  in  that  tu- 
multuous hour,  make  his  voice  heard.  But  in 
the  use  of  action,  more  expressive  than  words, 
he  threw  his  arms  around  the  neck  of  the  duke 
in  an  affectionate  embrace.  The  best  part  of 
the  multitude  accepted  this  as  the  indorsement 
of  his  fitness  for  the  trust,  by  one  in  whom 
they  could  confide.  It  was  on  this  occasion 
that  the  following  incident  occurred : 

"  You  know,"  said  Lafayette  to  Louis  Phi- 
lippe, "  that  I  am  a  Republican,  and  that  I  re- 
gard the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  as 
the  most  perfect  that  has  ever  existed." 

"I  think  as  you  do,"  Louis  Philippe  replied. 
"It  is  impossible  to  have  passed  two  years  in 
the  United  States,  as  I  have  done,  and  not  be 
of  that  opinion.  But  do  you  think  that  in  the 
present  state  of  France  a  republican  govern- 
ment can  be  adopted  ?" 

"  No,"  said  Lafayette ;  "  that  which  is  neces- 
sary for  France  now  is  a  throne,  surrounded 
by  republican  institutions.  All  must  be  re- 
publican." 


282  Louis  PHILIPPE  [1830. 


The  social  contract. 


"That  is  precisely  my  opinion,"  rejoined 
Louis  Philippe. 

After  this  scene,  the  duke,  immensely 
strengthened  in  his  position,  returned  to  the 
Palais  Eoyal,  accompanied  by  a  decided  in- 
crease of  acclamations.  Still  there  were  many 
murmurs.  The  people  could  not  forget  that 
he  was  by  birth  an  aristocrat  and  a  Bourbon  ; 
that  he  had  taken  no  part,  either  by  word  or 
deed,  in  the  conflict  for  the  overthrow  of  the 
despotic  throne ;  that,  concealed  in  the  recesses 
of  his  palace  at  Neuilly,  he  had  not  shown  his 
face  in  Paris  until  the  conflict  in  which  they 
were  shedding  their  blood  was  terminated,  and 
that  then  he  had  come  merely  to  assume  a 
crown. 

Immediately  after  the  withdrawal  of  Louis 
Philippe  from  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  Lafayette 
and  his  friends  drew  up  a  programme,  or  social 
contract,  in  which  they  endeavored  to  recon- 
cile republican  institutions  with  the  forms  of  a 
monarchy.  Lafayette  himself  took  this  con- 
tract to  the  Palais  Royal,  and  submitted  it  to 
the  duke.  He  gave  it  apparently  his  candid 
consent  There  were,  however,  Legitimists  as 
well  as  Republicans  who  had  no  faith  in  this 
union.  The  Abbe*  Gregoire  is  reported  to 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  283 


Singular  statement. 


have  exclaimed  in  disgust,  "  Good  God,  are  we 
then  to  have  both  a  republic  and  a  king  ?" 

There  were  yet  many  dangers  to  be  encoun- 
tered. The  word  king  had  not  been  distinct- 
ly spoken.  And  still  the  supreme  power  was 
placed  in  the  hands  of  Louis  Philippe,  the 
Duke  of  Orleans.  It  was  necessary  to  the 
more  full  organization  of  the  government  that 
he  should  be  recognized  as  a  sovereign.  But 
it  was  no  easy  matter  to  reconcile  the  populace 
of  Paris  to  the  idea  of  placing  a  Bourbon  at 
the  head  of  the  new  government. 

"  To  obviate  the  unfavorable  impression 
thus  produced,"  writes  Alison,  "the  Orleans 
committee  prepared  and  placarded  all  over 
Paris  a  proclamation  not  a  little  surprising, 
considering  that  M.  Mignet  and  M.  Thiers  were 
members  of  it — '  The  Duke  of  Orleans  is  not  a 
Bourbon;  he  is  a  Valois."1  A  remarkable  asser- 
tion to  be  made,  by  historians,  of  a  lineal  de- 
scendant of  Henry  IV.,  and  of  the  brother  of 
Louis  XIV." 

The  leading  journals  had  all  been  won  over 
to  the  side  of  the  Orleans  party.  We  would 
not  intimate  that  any  unworthy  means  had 
been  employed  to  secure  their  support.  Such 
men  as  Thiers,  Guizot,  Mignet,  are  above  sus- 


284  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Support  of  the  journals. 


picion.  They  doubtless  felt,  as  did  Lafayette, 
that  the  attempt  to  establish  a  Eepublic  would 
result  only  in  anarchy;  that  it  would  be  impos- 
sible to  maintain  a  Republic  in  a  realm  where 
the  large  majority  of  the  people  were  mon- 
archists. Still,  it  is  obvious  that  the  wealth 
of  a  party  composed  of  nearly  all  the  moneyed 
men  in  the  kingdom,  and  whose  leader  was  the 
richest  noble  in  France,  if  not  in  Europe,  was 
amply  sufficient  to  present  very  persuasive  in- 
fluences to  secure  the  support  of  any  journal- 
ist who  might  be  wavering.  The  result  was, 
that  nearly  all  the  periodicals  of  the  kingdom 
opened  their  broadsides  against  a  Republic. 
They  denounced  that  form  of  government  as 
the  sure  precursor  of  anarchy,  pillage,  and  a 
reign  of  terror,  and  as  certain  to  embroil 
France  in  another  war  with  combined  Europe. 
It  was,  indeed,  greatly  to  be  feared  that  the 
foreign  dynasties,  who  would  not  allow  France 
to  lay  aside  the  Bourbons  and  place  Napoleon 
upon  the  throne,  would  resist,  through  the 
same  devotion  to  the  principles  of  legitimacy, 
the  "usurpation  "  of  Louis  Philippe.  To  con- 
ciliate them  it  was  necessary  for  the  Duke  of 
Orleans  to  represent  that  he  was  in  sympathy 
with  the  hereditary  thrones,  co-operating  with 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  285 


Endeavors  to  reconcile  the  democracy. 


them  in  their  advocacy  of  exclusive  privilege, 
and  that  he  was,  providentially,  a  barrier  to 
whom  they  owed  a  debt  of  gratitude,  arresting 
France  from  rushing  over  to  democracy.  But 
the  open  avowal  of  these  opinions  would  rouse 
the  liberal  party  to  desperation  against  him. 

Notwithstanding  all  these  efforts  of  the  jour- 
nalists to  discredit  republicanism  in  every  pos- 
sible way,  there  still  remained  a  democratic 
party  in  Paris  among  the  populace,  led  by 
very  bold,  impetuous,  and  determined  men. 
These  leaders  had  great  influence  with  a  por- 
tion of  the  people  who  could  be  easily  roused 
to  insurrection,  which,  however  impotent,  might 
still  cause  the  streets  of  Paris  to  run  red  with 
blood.  It  was  deemed  a  matter  of  much  im- 
portance to  win  over  these  men.  A  meeting 
was  arranged  between  them  and  the  Duke 
of  Orleans.  M.  Boinvilliers,  a  man  who  un- 
derstood himself,  and  who  was  entirely  unawed 
in  the  presence  of  dignitaries,  was  the  spokes- 
man of  the  delegation.  His  scrutinizing  inter- 
rogatories embarrassed  the  duke  exceedingly. 

"  To-morrow,"  said  M.  Boinvilliers,  "you  are 
to  be  king.  What  are  your  ideas  upon  the 
treaties  of  1815?" 

By  the  treaties  which  in  that  year  the  con- 


286  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  treaties  of  1S15. 


querors  of  Waterloo  formed  at  Vienna,  Europe 
was  partitioned  out  among  the  dynasties,  so  as 
to  bind  the  people  hand  and  foot,  and  render 
any  future  uprising  in  behalf  of  liberty  almost 
impossible.  The  River  Rhine,  since  the  days 
of  Caesar,  had  been  regarded  as  the  natural 
boundary  between  France  and  Germany. 
Large  provinces  on  the  French  banks  of  the 
Rhine  were  wrested  from  France  and  placed 
in  the  hands  of  Prussia,  that,  in  case  the  French 
people  should  again  endeavor  to  overthrow 
the  aristocratic  institutions  of  feudal  despotism, 
the  allied  dynasties  might  have  an  unobstruct- 
ed march  open  before  them  into  the  heart  of 
France. 

Though  the  Bourbons,  replaced  by  foreign 
bayonets,  had  entered  into  this  arrangement 
for  their  own  protection  against  democracy, 
still,  the  discontent  of  the  French  people,  in 
view  of  the  degradation,  was  so  great  that 
even  Charles  X,  was  conspiring  to  regain  the 
lost  boundary.  According  to  the  testimony 
of  his  minister,  Viscount  Chateaubriand,  he 
was  entering  into  a  secret  treaty  with  Russia 
to  aid-  the  czar  in  his  designs  upon  Turkey, 
and,  in  return,  Russia  was  to  aid  France  in  re- 
gaining her  lost  Rhenish  provinces.  In  refer* 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  287 


The  duke  interviewed. 


ence  to  these  treaties  of  1815  even  one  of  the 
British  quarterlies  has  said : 

"Though  the  most  desperate  efforts  have 
been  made  by  the  English  diplomatists  to  em- 
balm them  as  monuments  of  political  wisdom, 
they  should  be  got  under  ground  with  all  pos- 
sible dispatch,  for  no  compacts  so  worthless,  so 
wicked,  so  utterly  subversive  of  the  rights  of 
humanity,  are  to  be  found  in  the  annals  of  na- 
tions." 

When  the  question  was  asked  of  Louis  Phi- 
lippe, "  What  are  your  ideas  upon  the  trea- 
ties of  1815?"  his  embarrassment  was  great. 
Should  he  say  he  approved  of  those  treaties, 
all  France  would  raise  a  cry  of  indignation. 
Should  he  say  that  he  was  prepared  to  assail 
them,  all  the  surrounding  dynasties  would 
combine  in  hostility  to  his  reign. 

The  reply  of  the  duke  was  adroit.  "I  am 
no  partisan  to  the  treaties  of  1815.  But  we 
must  avoid  irritating  foreign  powers." 

The  next  question  was  still  more  embarrass- 
'.ng,  for  it  was  to  be  answered  not  only  in  the 
ears  of  this  democratic  delegation,  but  in  the 
hearing  of  all  aristocratic  Europe  eagerly  list- 
ening. "What  are  your  opinions  upon  the 
subject  of  an  hereditary  peerage?"  Still  the 


288  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1830. 

Interesting  statement  ot  Chateaubriand. 

duke  manifested  no  little  skill  in  meeting  it. 
He  replied: 

"In  hereditary  aristocracy  is  the  best  basis 
of  society.  But  if  the  hereditary  peerage  can 
not  maintain  itself,  I  certainly  shall  not  endow 
it.  I  was  once  a  Republican ;  but  I  am  con- 
vinced that  a  Republic  is  inapplicable  to  such 
a  country  as  France." 

The  interview  was  unsatisfactory  to  the 
delegation,  and  tae  members  retired  in  dis- 
gust.* 

Chateaubriand,  with  all  the  ardor  of  his  po- 
etic and  religious  instincts,  was  a  Legitimist. 
As  the  representative  of  the  old  Bourbon  re- 
gime, he  sought  an  audience  with  the  duke, 
hoping  to  induce  him  to  decline  the  crown, 
and  to  act  in  the  interests  of  the  expelled  dy- 
nasty. In  his  "  Memoires  d'Outre  Tombe," 
this  illustrious  man  has  given  a  minute  ac- 
count of  the  conversation  which  took  place. 
Chateaubriand  was  received  by  the  Duchess 
of  Orleans,  who  very  cordially  invited  him  to 
take  a  seat  near  her.  Rather  abruptly  she 
3ommenced  the  conversation  by  saying, 

"Ah,  Monsieur  de  Chateaubriand,  we  are 
very  unhappy.  If  all  parties  could  unite,  we 
*  Louis  Blanc,  i.,  359 


1830.J  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE,  289 


The  conversation. 


might  yet  be  saved.  What  do  you  think 
about  it  ?" 

"Madame,"  Chateaubriand  replied,  "noth- 
ing is  so  easy.  Charles  X.  and  Monsieur  the 
Dauphin  have  abdicated.  Henry,  the  Duke  of 
Bordeaux,  is  now  king.  The  Dulie  of  Orleans 
is  lieutenant-general  of  the  realm.  Let  him  be 
regent  during  the  minority  of  Henry  V.,  and 
all  is  right." 

"But,  Monsieur  de  Chateaubriand,"  said  the 
duchess,  "the  people  are  very  much  agitated. 
We  shall  fall  into  anarchy." 

" Madame,"  replied  Chateaubriand,  "may  I 
venture  to  inquire  of  you  what  is  the  intention 
of  the  Duke  of  Orleans?  Will  he  accept  the 
crown,  if  it  is  offered  to  him?" 

The  duchess,  after  a  moment's  hesitation, 
added,  without  replying  to  the  question,  "  Re- 
flect,  Monsieur  de  Chateaubriand,  upon  the 
evils  to  which  we  are  exposed.  It  is  neces- 
sary that  all  good  men  should  unite  in  the  en- 
deavor to  save  us  from  a  Eepublic.  You  could 
render  great  service  as  ambassador  to  Rome, 
or  in  the  ministry  here,  should  you  not  wish 
to  leave  Paris." 

"  Madame  is  not  ignorant,"  Chateaubriand 
rejoined,  "  of  my  devotion  to  the  young  king 

4—19 


290  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Counsel  of  Chateaubriand. 


and  to  his  mother.  Your  royal  highness  could 
not  wish  that  I  should  give  the  lie  to  my 
whole  life" — queje  dementisse  toute  ma  vie. 

"  Monsieur  de  Chateaubriand,"  replied  the 
duchess,  "you  do  not  know  my  niece.  She  is 
so  frivolous.  Poor  Caroline  !  But  I  will  send 
for  the  Duke  of  Orleans.  He  can  persuade 
you  better  than  I  can." 

The  duke  soon  entered,  in  dishevelled  dressv 
and  with  a  countenance  expressive  of  great 
anxiety  and  fatigue.  After  a  few  words, 
which  Chateaubriand  rather  contemptuously 
records  as  an  "idyl  upon  the  pleasures  of 
country  life,"  Chateaubriand  repeated  what  he 
had  said  to  the  duchess. 

The  duke  exclaimed,  "  That  is  just  what  I 
should  like.  Nothing  would  please  me  better 
than  to  be  the  tutor  and  guardian  of  that 
child,  I  think  just  as  you  do,  M.  Chateau- 
briand. To  take  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux 
would  certainly  be  the  best  thing  that  could 
be  done.  I  fear  only  that  events  are  stronger 
than  we." 

"Stronger  than  we,  my  lord!"  rejoined  M. 
Chateaubriand.  "Are  you  not  esteemed  by  ail 
the  powers?  Let  us  go  and  join  Henry  V. 
Call  around  you,  outside  the  walls  of  Paris,  the 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  291 


Termination  of  the  interview. 


Chambers  and  the  army.  At  the  first  tidings 
of  your  departure  all  this  effervescence  will 
cease,  and  every  one  will  seek  shelter  under 
your  protection  and  enlightened  power." 

The  duke  was  much  embarrassed.  He 
seemed  to  avoid  looking  Chateaubriand  in  the 
face.  With  averted  eyes  be  said,  "  The  thing 
is  more  difficult  than  you  imagine.  It  can  not 
be  accomplished.  You  do  not  know  what 
peril  we  are  in.  A  furious  band  can  launch 
against  the  Chambers  with  the  most  frightful 
excesses;  and  we  have  no  means  of  defense. 
Be  assured  that  it  is  I  alone  who  now  hold 
back  this  menacing  crowd.  If  the  Eoyalist 
party  be  not  massacred,  it  will  owe  its  life 
solely  to  my  efforts." 

M.  de  Chateaubriand  responded  in  brave 
words,  which  perhaps  the  occasion  warranted : 

"  My  .  lord,  I  have  seen  some  massacres. 
Those  who  have  passed  through  the  Revolu- 
tion are  inured  to  war.  The  gray  mustaches 
are  not  terrified  by  objects  which  frighten  the 
conscripts." 

These  not  very  courteous  remarks,  which 
implied  that,  though  the  duke  might  be  a  cow- 
ard, the  viscount  was  not,  terminated  the  in^ 
terview. 


292  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1630. 


Remonstrance  of  M.  Arago. 


Chateaubriand,  then  the  most  distinguish- 
ed writer  and  illustrious  orator  in  France,  had 
prepared  an  "  accusing  and  terrible  speech," 
to  be  addressed  to  the  Chamber  of  Peers, 
pleading  the  cause  of  the  vanquished  dynasty, 
and  protesting  against  the  Orleans  usurpation. 

"  This  news,"  writes  Louis  Blanc,  "  had 
reached  the  Palais  Royal,  which  it  threw  into 
the  utmost  uneasiness.  Such  a  danger  was  to 
be  averted  at  any  cost.  Madame  Adelaide 
saw  M.  Arago,  and  told  him  that  he  would 
entitle  himself  to  unbounded  gratitude  if  he 
would  see  M.  de  Chateaubriand  and  entreat 
him  to  forego  his  intended  speech ;  upon 
which  condition  he  should  be  assured  of  hav- 
ing his  place  in  the  administration. 

"  M.  Arago  called  upon  the  illustrious  poet 
and  submitted  to  him  that  France  had  just 
been  shaken  to  its  inmost  centre ;  that  it  was 
important  to  avoid  exposing  it  to  the  risk  of 
too  sudden  reactions ;  that  the  Duke  of  Or- 
leans would  have  it  in  his  power,  on  becoming 
king,  to  do  much  for  public  liberty ;  and  that 
it  became  a  man  like  Viscount  de  Chateau- 
briand to  abstain  from  making  himself  the 
mouth-piece  of  the  agitators  at  the  commence- 
ment of  a  reign. 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S   THRONE.  293 


Flattering  offers  to  Chateaubriand. 


"  He  ended  by  telling  him  that  a  better 
means  remained  to  him  to  serve  his  country 
with  advantage,  and  that  there  would  be  no 
hesitation  to  bestow  a  portefeuille  upon  him — 
that  of  public  instruction,  for  example.  Cha- 
teaubriand shook  his  head  suddenly,  and  re- 
plied that,  of  all  he  had  just  heard,  that  which 
most  touched  his  heart  was  the  consideration 
of  what  was  due  to  the  interests  of  France  in 
its  deeply  disturbed  condition ;  that  he  expect- 
ed nothing,  and  would  accept  nothing  upon  the 
ruin  of  his  hopes;  but,  since  his  speech  might 
sow  the  seeds  of  rancor  in  his  native  land,  he 
would  soften  down  its  tenor.  This  singular 
negotiation  took  place  on  the  eve  of  the  7th  of 
August." 

The  next  evening,  the  8th  of  August,  there 
was  a  meeting  of  the  Chamber  of  Peers.  In 
the  eloquent  speech  which  M.  Chateaubriand 
made  in  advocacy  of  the  old  regime,  he  said; 

"A  king  named  by  the  Chambers,  or  elect- 
ed by  the  people,  will  ever  be  a  novelty  in 
France.  I  suppose  they  wish  liberty — above 
all,  the  liberty  of  the  press,  by  which  and  for 
which  they  have  obtained  so  astonishing  a  vic- 
tory. Well,  every  new  monarchy,  sooner  or 
later,  will  be  obliged  to  restrain  that  liberty. 


294  Louis  PHILIPPE  [1830. 

Speech  of  Viscount  Chateaubriand. 

Was  Napoleon  himself  able  to  admit  it?  The 
liberty  of  the  press  can  not  live  in  safety  but 
under  a  government  which  has  struck  its  roots 
deep  into  the  hearts  of  men. 

"A  Republic  is  still  more  impracticable.  In 
the  existing  state  of  our  morals,  and  in  our  re- 
lations with  the  adjoining  states,  such  a  gov- 
ernment is  out  of  the  question.  The  first  dif- 
ficulty would  be  to  bring  the  French  to  any 
unanimous  opinion  upon  the  subject.  What 
right  have  the  people  of  Paris  to  impose  a 
government,  by  their  yote,  on  the  people  of 
Marseilles?  What  right  have  they  to  con- 
strain any  other  town  to  receive  the  rulers 
which  they  have  chosen,  or  the  form  of  gov- 
ernment which  they  have  adopted?  Shall  we 
have  one  Republic,  or  twenty  Republics?  a 
federal  union,  or  a  commonwealth  one  and  in- 
divisible? 

"  Charles  X.  and  his  son  are  dethroned,  or 
have  abdicated,  as  you  have  heard.  But  the 
throne  is  not  thereby  vacant.  After  them  a 
child  is  called  to  the  succession ;  and  who  will 
venture  to  condemn  his  innocence?  I  know 
that  in  removing  that  child  it  is  said  you  es- 
tablish the  sovereignty  of  the  people.  Vain 
illusion !  which  proves  that  in  the  march  of 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  295 


Resolve  passed  by  the  Deputies. 


intellect  our  old  democrats  have  not  made 
greater  advances  than  the  partisans  of  royalty. 
It  were  easy  to  show  that  men  may  be  as  free 
and  freer  under  a  Monarchy  than  a  Eepublic. 
After  all  I  have  said,  done,  and  written  for  the 
Bourbons,  I  should  be  the  basest  of  the  human 
race  if  I  denied  them  when,  for  the  third  and 
<ast  time,  they  are  directing  their  steps  towards 
exile."* 

On  the  morning  of  the  next  day,  the  9th, 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies  met  at  the  Palais 
Bourbon.  It  was  a  very  exciting  scene,  and 
strong  opposition  was  manifested  against  pro- 
claiming the  Duke  of  Orleans  king.  After  an 
angry  debate  the  motion  was  carried,  that, 

"Considering  that  the  king,  Charles  X.,  his 
royal  highness  Louis  Antoine,  dauphin,  and 
wll  the  members  of  the  elder  branch  of  the 
royal  family,  are  at  this  moment  quitting 
French  territory,  the  throne  is  declared  to  be 
vacant,  de  facto  and  dejure,  and  that  it  is  indis- 
pensably needful  to  provide  for  the  same." 

The  friends  of  the  duke  felt  that  their  only 
hope  consisted  in  driving  the  question  to  an 
immediate  decision.  The  Chamber  of  Depu- 
ties had  no  legal  authority  to  elect  a  king. 
*  Monitewr,  August  3, 1830.  * 


296  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Louis  Philippe  chosen  king. 


M.  Fleury  demanded  that  the  electoral  colleges 
should  be  invoked  to  elect  a  new  assembly, 
with  special  powers  delegated  to  the  Deputies 
to  elect  a  king.  The  demand  was  not  listened 
to.  M.  de  Corcelles  urged  that  the  question 
should  be  submitted  to  the  people,  that  the 
voice  of  universal  suffrage  might  decide  what 
should  be  the  form  of  government  for  France, 
and  who  should  be  the  sovereign.  This  prop- 
osition was  rejected.  The  venerable  Labbey 
de  Pompieres  then  demanded  that  the  voters 
should  inscribe  their  names  and  their  votes  in 
a  register.  This  they  had  not  courage  to  do; 
for,  in  case  of  the  return  of  the  Bourbons,  they 
would  lose  their  heads. 

"Thus,"  writes  Louis  Blanc,  "the  crown  of 
France  was  voted  as  a  simple  matter  of  by- 
law regulation." 

After  some  amendments  of  the  charter,  the 
vote  was  taken.  It  was  a  tumultuous  scene, 
and  there  is  some  little  discrepancy  in  the 
number  of  votes  given  as  the  result  of  the 
ballot.  Louis  Blanc  gives  the  result  as  fol- 
lows : 

Number  of  voters 252 

White  balls 229 

Black  balls...  ,     33 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  297 


Subsequent  vote  for  Napoleon. 


"  Thus,"  he  adds,  "  229  Deputies,  who  in  or- 
dinary  times  would  have  formed  a  majority  of 
but  two  voices,  had  modified  the  constitution, 
pronounced  the  forfeiture  of  one  dynasty,  and 
erected  a  new  one." 

France  contained  between  thirty  and  forty 
million  inhabitants.  Two  hundred  and  twen- 
ty-nine Deputies,  with  no  delegated  authority 
to  do  so,  decided  upon  the  form  of  government 
for  these  millions,  and  chose  their  sovereign. 

When,  several  years  after,  the  throne  of 
Louis  Philippe  was  overthrown,  an  appeal  to 
universal  suffrage  re-established  the  Empire, 
and  placed  the  crown  upon  the  brow  of  Napo- 
leon III.  In  this  act  the  voice  of  the  nation 
was  heard.  The  vote  was  taken  throughout 
the  eighty-six  departments  of  France,  in  Al- 
giers, in  the  army,  and  in  the  navy.  The  re- 
sult was  as  follows : 

Affirmative  votes 7,844,180 

Negative 253,145 

Irregular 63,326 

Total 8,160,651 

The  action  of  the  Deputies  in  choosing  Louis 
Philippe  king  greatly  exasperated  the  Demo- 
crats. They  endeavored  to  stir  up  insurrection 


298  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [183(X 


Reply  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


in  the  streets;  but  the  journals  were  against 
them,  and  they  had  neither  leaders  of  any  re- 
pute, organization,  or  money.  A  procession, 
four  abreast,  marched  through  the  streets  to  the 
Palais  Royal,  to  inform  Louis  Philippe  of  his 
election  by  their  body  to  the  throne  of  France. 
The  newly  elected  king  feelingly  replied : 

"I  receive  with  deep  emotion  the  declara- 
tion you  present  to  me.  I  regard  it  as  the  ex« 
pression  of  the  national  will ;  and  it  appears  to 
me  conformable  to  the  political  principles  I 
have  all  my  life  professed.  Full  of  remem- 
brances which  have  always  made  me  wish  that 
I  might  never  be  called  to  a  throne,  and  habit- 
uated to  the  peaceful  life  I  led  in  my  family,  1 
can  not  conceal  from  you  all  the  feelings  that 
agitate  my  heart  in  this  great  conjuncture.  But 
there  is  one  which  overbears  all  the  rest — that 
is,  the  love  of  my  country.  I  feel  what  it  pre- 
scribes to  me,  and  I  will  do  it." 

According  to  Alison,  in  the  Chamber  of 
Peers  eighty -nine  voted  "the  address  to  the 
Duke  of  Orleans  to  accept  the  throne,  while  ten 
voted  against  it."  But  there  was  great  infor- 
mality in  all  these  hurried  proceedings.  "  We 
will  not,"  writes  Lamartine,  "enter  into  the  de- 
tails of  these  gradual  approaches  to  the  throne 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  299 


Testimony  of  Alison. 


during  the  five  days  which  preceded  the  elec- 
tion of  one  who  had  no  title,  by  a  Parliament 
which  had  no  mission,  to  a  royalty  which  had 
no  rights."* 

In  the  same  spirit  Sir  Archibald  Alison 
writes:  "Thus  did  a  small  minority,  not  ex- 
ceeding a  third  of  either  Chamber,  at  the  dicta- 
tion of  a  clique  in  the  antechambers  of  the 
Duke  of  Orleans,  dispose  of  the  crown  to  a 
Granger  to  the  legitimate  line,  without  either 
consulting  the  nation  or  knowing  what  form 
of  government  it  desired."f  The  two  Cham- 
bers hurriedly  prepared  a  constitution,  to  which 
Louis  Philippe  gave  his  assent.  The  ceremo- 
ny of  inauguration — it  could  scarcely  be  called 
coronation  —  took  place  with  much  pomp,  in 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  on  the  9th  of  Au- 
gust, 1830. 

"  Gentlemen,  peers,  and  deputies,"  said  the 
Duke  of  Orleans,  "  I  have  read  with  great  at- 
tention the  declaration  of  the  Chamber  of 
Deputies  and  the  adhesion  of  the  peers,  and  I 
have  weighed  and  meditated  upon  all  its  ex- 
pressions. I  accept,  without  restriction  or  re- 
serve, the  clauses  and  engagements  which  that 

*  History  of  the  Restoration,  vol.  iv.,  p.  489. 
t  Alison,  vol.  vi.,  p.  463. 


300  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  inauguration. 


declaration  contains,  and  the  title  of  King  of 
the  French,  which  it  confers  upon  me."  He 
then  took  the  following  oath  : 

"  In  the  presence  of  God,  I  swear  to  observe 
faithfully  the  Constitutional  Charter,  with  the 
modifications  contained  in  the  declaration  ;  to 
govern  only  by  the  laws  and  according  to  the 
laws  ;  to  render  fair  and  equal  justice  to  every 
one  according  to  his  right,  and  to  act  in  every 
thing  in  no  other  view  but  that  of  the  interest, 
the  happiness,  and  the  glory  of  the  French 
people." 

The  hall  resounded  with  shouts  of  "Vive  le 
Roif"  The  new-made  sovereign,  with  a  splen- 
did cortege,  retired,  to  take  up  his  residence 
in  the  Tuileries  as  King  of  the  French.  The 
Revolution  was  consummated.  The  throne  of 
Louis  Philippe  was  erected. 

Louis  Philippe,  during  his  reign  of  about 
eighteen  years,  encountered  nothing  but  trou- 
ble. The  advocates  of  Legitimacy  —  of  the 
divine  right  of  kings  —  regarded  him  as  an 
usurper.  As  the  voice  of  the  nation  was  not 
consulted  in  placing  him  upon  the  throne,  the 
masses  of  the  people  deemed  themselves  de- 
frauded of  their  rights,  and  hated  him  as  the 
representative  only  of  the  moneyed  aristocracy 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  301 


The  Liberal  party. 


of  Paris.  The  bitterness  with  which  he  was 
assailed  by  the  Liberal  party  may  be  inferred 
from  the  following  extract  from  the  "  Revolu- 
tion of  1848,"  by  Louis  Blanc: 

"  Whatever  may  have  been  the  baseness 
of  Rome  under  the  Caesars,  it  was  equalled 
by  the  corruption  in  France  in  the  reign  of 
Louis  Philippe.  Nothing  like  it  had  ever 
been  witnessed  in  history.  The  thirst  for  gold 
having  obtained  possession  of  minds  agitated 
by  impure  desires,  society  terminated  by  sink- 
ing into  brute  materialism.  The  formula  of 
selfishness  —  every  one  by  himself  and  for 
himself — had  been  adopted  by  the  sovereign 
the  maxim  of  state ;  and  that  maxim,  alike 
hideous  and  fatal,  had  become  the  ruling  prin- 
ciple of  government.  It  was  the  device  of 
Louis  Philippe,  a  prince  gifted  with  moder- 
ation, knowledge,  tolerance,  humanity ;  but 
skeptical,  destitute  either  of  nobility  of  heart 
or  elevation  of  mind;  the  most  experienced 
corrupter  of  the  human  race  that  ever  appear- 
ed on  earth." 

There  were  thirty -four  millions  of  people  in 
France.  Of  these,  but  one  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  of  the  richest  proprietors  enjoyed  the 
right  of  suffrage.  Consequently,  the  laws  were 


302  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


The  Liberal  party. 


framed  to  favor  the  rich.  All  the  efforts  of 
the  people  to  secure  a  reform  of  the  electoral 
law  proved  unavailing.  The  agitation  of  the 
subject  increased  every  year,  and  the  cry  for 
parliamentary  reform  was  ever  growing  loud- 
er and  more  menacing.  Many  of  the  illustri- 
ous men  in  France  joined  this  reform  par- 
ty. Among  others,  there  was  M.  Lafitte,  the 
wealthy  banker,  M.  Odillon  Barrot,  the  re- 
nowned advocate,  and  M.  Arago,  the  distin- 
guished philosopher. 

We  may  search  history  in  vain  for  the  rec* 
ord  of  any  monarch  so  unrelentingly  harassed 
as  was  Louis  Philippe  from  the  time  he  as- 
cended the  throne  until  he  was  driven  from 
it.  He  was  irreproachable  in  morals,  a  man 
who  had  seen  much  of  the  world  in  all  its 
phases,  sagacious  and  well-meaning.  But  he 
was  placed  in  a  position  in  which  no  earthly 
wisdom  could  rescue  him  from  the  direst  trou- 
ble. There  were  two  antagonistic  and  very 
powerful  parties  watching  him. 

The  one  was  the  Liberal  party  in  France, 
of  various  shades  of  opinion,  demanding  equal 
rights  for  all  men  ;  hating  the  old  dynastic 
despotisms  of  Europe  who  had  forced  the 
Bourbons  upon  them,  and  hating  those  treaties 


1830.]  Louis  PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  303. 


The  Legitimists. 


of  Vienna  of  1815,  which  had  shorn  France  of 
a  large  portion  of  her  territory,  and  had  bound 
Europe  hand  and  foot,  so  as  to  prevent  any 
future  uprising  of  the  friends  of  popular  lib- 
erty. 

The  other  party  consisted  of  the  old  aristoc- 
racy of  France,  the  Legitimists,  supported  by 
the  sympathies  of  all  the  courts  of  Europe, 
who  were  supposed  to  be  not  only  willing  but 
eager  to  unite  their  armies  to  maintain  the 
principles  of  the  old  regime  in  France,  and 
thus  to  prevent  the  establishment  there  of 
those  principles  of  popular  liberty  which 
would  endanger  all  their  thrones. 

The  difference  between  these  two  parties 
was  irreconcilable.  As  Louis  Philippe  was 
situated,  he  was  compelled  to  choose  between 
the  two.  He  chose  the  latter.  This  involved 
him  in  unrelenting  and  unintermitted  war 
with  the  former.  Alison  says,  "  Concession  to 
the  Kepublican  party,  and  a  general  change  in 
external  policy,  so  earnestly  pressed  upon  him 
by  the  Liberals,  would  lead  at  once  to  a  gen- 
eral war;"  that  is,  the  surrounding  dynasties 
would  not  permit  free  institutions  to  be  estab- 
lished in  France. 

Louis  Philippe  was  a  man  of  great  decision 


Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1830. 


Firmness  of  the  king. 


of  character,  as  his  friends  would  say.  His 
enemies  called  that  trait  stubbornness.  In  a 
letter  purporting  to  have  been  written  on  the 
9th  of  November,  1849,  by  his  son,  the  Prince 
de  Joinville,  to  the  Duke  de  Nemours,  the 
writer  says  to  his  brother : 

"  I  write  one  word  to  you,  for  I  am  disquiet- 
ed at  the  events  which  I  see  on  all  sides  thick- 
ening  around  us.  Indeed,  I  begin  to  be  serious- 
ly alarmed.  The  king  is  inflexible.  He  will 
listen  to  no  advice.  His  own  will  must  prevail 
over  every  thing.  There  are  no  longer  any 
ministers.  Their  responsibility  is  null.  Every 
thing  rests  with  the  king.  He  has  arrived  at 
an  age  when  observations  are  no  longer  listen- 
ed to.  He  is  accustomed  to  govern,  and  he 
loves  to  show  that  he  does  so." 

The  king  is  reported  to  have  said,  at  the 
close  of  a  Cabinet  meeting,  in  reply  to  some 
who  urged  concessions  to  the  Liberal  party, 
"  Every  one  appears  to  be  for  reform — some 
demand  it,  others  promise  it.  For  my  part,  I 
will  never  be  a  party  to  such  weakness.  Re- 
form is  another  word  for  war.  When  the  op- 
position succeed  to  power,  I  shall  take  my  de- 
parture." 

This  was  the  declaration  of  the  king — that 


1830.]  Louis   PHILIPPE'S  THRONE.  305 

Law  prohibiting  assemblies. 

the  surrounding  dynasties  would  not  permit 
popular  rights  in  France.  An  ancient  law  of 
the  old  regime  did  not  allow  the  people  to  as- 
semble to  discuss  affairs  of  state.  Louis  Phi- 
lippe revived  the  law,  and  enforced  it  rigor- 
ously. To  evade  this  prohibition,  large  dinner- 
parties, or  banquets,  as  they  were  called,  were 
introduced,  which  afforded  an  opportunity  of 
offering  toasts. 
4—20 


306  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Death  of  General  Lamarque. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  ADVENTURES  OF   THE  DUCHESS 
DE  BERRI  . 

LOUIS  PHILIPPE  had  scarcely  taken  his 
seat  upon  the  throne  ere  he  found  himself 
involved  in  apparently  inextricable  embar- 
rassments. Legitimists  and  Kepublicans  were 
alike  hostile  to  his  reign.  That  he  might  con- 
ciliate the  surrounding  dynasties,  and  save 
himself  from  such  a  coalition  of  crowned  heads 
as  crushed  Napoleon  I.,  he  felt  constrained  to 
avow  political  principles  and  adopt  measures 
which  exasperated  the  Eepublicans,  and  yet 
did  not  reconcile  the  Legitimists  to  what  they 
deemed  his  usurpation.  Notwithstanding  the 
most  rigid  censorship  of  the  press  France  has 
ever  known,  the  Government  was  assailed  m 
various  ways,  continuously  and  mercilessly, 
with  rancor  which  could  scarcely  be  surpassed. 
On  the  1st  of  June,  1832,  General  Lamarque 
died  —  one  of  the  most  distinguished  general* 
of  the  Empire.  He  had  gained  great  popuiioi. 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      807 


The  funeral. 


ity  by  his  eloquent  speeches  in  the  tribune  in 
favor  of  the  rights  of  the  people.  Napoleon,  at 
St.  Helena,  spoke  of  him  in  the  highest  terms 
of  commendation.  His  death  occurred  just  at 
the  moment  when  Paris  was  on  the  eve  of  an 
insurrection,  and  it  was  immediately  resolved 
to  take  advantage  of  the  immense  gathering 
which  would  be  assembled  at  his  funeral  to 
raise  the  banner  of  revolt.  A  meeting  of  all 
the  opposition  had  just  been  held  at  the  house 
of  the  banker,  M.  Lafitte,  who  had  been  so  in- 
fluential an  agent  in  crowning  the  Duke  of 
Orleans.  A  committee  had  been  appointed, 
consisting  of  Lafayette,  Odillon  Barrot,  M.  Man- 
guin,  and  others  of  similar  influence  and  rank, 
to  draw  up  an  address  to  the  nation.  All  the 
leaders  of  the  popular  committees  were  very 
busy  in  preparation  for  the  outbreak,  and  arms 
were  secretly  distributed  and  officers  appointed, 
that  they  might  act  with  efficiency  should  they 
be  brought  into  collision  with  the  royal  troops. 
The  funeral  took  place  on  the  5th  of  June. 
It  was  one  of  the  most  imposing  spectacles  Par- 
is had  ever  witnessed — assembling,  apparent- 
ly, the  whole  population  of  the  metropolis,  with 
thousands  from  the  provinces.  A  magnificent 
car,  decorated  with  tricolor  flags,  bore  the  re- 


308  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


S'.rength  of  the  royal  forces. 


mains.  The  procession  moved  from  the  house 
of  the  deceased  through  the  Rue  St.  Honor6  to 
the  Church  of  the  Madeleine,  and  thence,  by 
way  of  the  teeming  Boulevards,  to  the  Place  of 
the  Bastile,  where  several  funeral  orations  were 
pronounced,  and  where  the  body  was  received, 
to  be  taken  to  its  place  of  burial  in  the  south 
of  France.  All  the  Republican  and  Demo- 
cratic clubs  turned  out  in  full  strength.  The 
Chamber  of  Deputies  was  present.  Banners, 
inscribed  with  exciting  popular  devices,  floated 
in  the  air. 

The  police  of  Paris  was  maintained  by  two 
thousand  municipal  guards.  In  anticipation 
of  an  outbreak,  the  Government  had  summon- 
ed into  the  squares  of  the  city  an  additional 
force  of  twenty-two  thousand  troops,  consist- 
ing of  eighteen  thousand  infantry,  four  thou- 
sand cavalry,  and  eighty  pieces  of  cannon. 
And,  as  an  additional  precaution,  there  was  a 
reserve  of  thirty  thousand  troops  stationed  in 
the  vicinity  of  Paris  who  could  in  an  hour  be 
brought  into  the  streets.  Apparently  here 
/was  ample  force  to  crush  any  uprising  of  the 
populace. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  populace  could 
easily  rally  an  enthusiastic  mass  of  one  hun- 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      309 


Movement  of  the  procession. 


dred  thousand  men.  Large  numbers  of  these 
were  accustomed,  in  their  clubs,  to  act  in  con- 
cert. Their  leaders  were  appointed — each  one 
having  his  special  duty  assigned  to  him.  Not 
a  few  of  these  were  veteran  soldiers,  who  had 
served  their  term  in  the  army,  and  there  were 
military  men  of  distinction  to  lead  them.  The 
forces,  therefore,  which 'might  be  brought  into 
collision  were  not  very  unequal. 

The  immense  procession  commenced  its 
movement  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The 
whole  city  was  in  excitement.  All  hearts 
were  oppressed  with  the  conviction  that  tu- 
multuous scenes  might  be  witnessed  before  the 
sun  should  go  down.  When  the  head  of  the 
procession  reached  the  Place  Vendome,  it  was 
turned  from  its  contemplated  course,  so  as  to 
pass  up  through  the  Place  and  the  Rue  de  la 
Paix  to  the  Boulevards,  thus  marching  beneath 
the  shadow  of  the  magnificent  column  of  Aus- 
terlitz,  which  has  given  the  Place  Vendome 
world-wide  renown. 

Cries  of  Vive  la  Republique  began  now  to 
be  heard.  A  hundred  and  fifty  pupils  of  the 
celebrated  military  school,  the  Polytechnic,  join- 
ed the  procession,  shouting  "Vive  la  Liberte!" 
These  shouts  were  soon  followed  by  the  still 


310  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Speech  of  General  Umiuski. 


more  ominous  cry,  "A  bos  Louis  Philippe!" 
"Vive  Lafayette/"  The  storm  of  popular  ex- 
citement was  rapidly  rising. 

When  the  funeral-car  had  reached  its  point 
of  destination,  near  the  bridge  of  Austerlitz, 
where  the  remains  were  to  be  transferred  to 
those  who  would  carry  them  to  their  distant 
place  of  burial,  several  brief  funeral  orations 
were  pronounced,  adroitly  calculated  still  more 
intensely  to  arouse  popular  feeling.  A  Polish 
refugee,  General  Uminski,  in  .an  impassioned 
harangue,  said : 

"  Lamarque,  you  were  the  worthy  represent- 
ative of  the  people.  You  were  ours.  You 
belonged  to  the  human  race.  All  people  who 
love  freedom  will  shed  tears  at  your  tomb. 
In  raising  your  noble  voice  for  Poland,  you 
served  the  cause  of  all  nations  as  well  as 
France.  You  served  the  cause  of  liberty — 
that  of  the  interests  dearest  to  humanity. 
You  defended  it  against  the  Holy  Alliance, 
which  grew  up  on  the  tomb  of  Poland,  and 
which  will  never  cease  to  threaten  the  liberties 
of  the  world  till  the  crime  which  cemented  it 
shall  have  been  effaced  by  the  resurrection  of 
its  unfortunate  victim."* 

*  Louis  Blanc,  in.,  296. 


THE   BARRICADE. 


1832.J   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI. 


Advance  of  the  cuirassiers. 


The  agitation  was  now  indescribable.  Gen- 
eral Lafayette  was  urged  to  repair  to  the  Ho- 
tel de  Ville  and  organize  a  provisional  govern- 
ment. The  crowd  unharnessed  his  horses  and 
began,  with  shouts,  to  draw  him  in  his  carriage 
through  the  streets.  Suddenly  the  cry  was 
raised,  "The  Dragoons!"  A  mounted  squad- 
ron of  cuirassiers,  with  glittering  swords  and 
coats  of  mail,  in  a  dense  mass  which  filled  the 
streets,  came  clattering  down  at  the  full  charge 
upon  the  multitude,  cutting  right  and  left. 
Blood  flowed  in  torrents,  and  the  wounded 
and  the  dead  were  strewn  over  the  pavements. 
The  battle  was  begun.  Fiercely  it  raged. 
Barricades  were  instantly  constructed,  which 
arrested  the  progress  of  the  troops.  As  by 
magic,  fire-arms  appeared  in  the  hands  of  the 
populace.  Notwithstanding  the  general  tu- 
mult and  consternation,  order  emerged  from 
the  chaos.  Every  house  became  a  citadel  for 
the  insurgents,  and  two  armies  were  found  con- 
fronting each  other. 

The  king  and  his  council,  in  session  at  the 
Tuileries,  were  greatly  alarmed.  At  three 
o'clock  the  tidings  were  brought  that  one-third 
of  the  metropolis,  protected  by  barricades,  was 
in  the  possession  of  the  insurgents,  and  that 


31-i  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


The  Provisional  Government. 


the  aspect  of  affairs  was  threatening  in  the  ex- 
treme. Orders  were  transmitted  for  all  the 
royal  troops  within  thirty  miles  of  Paris  to 
hasten  to  the  capital.  The  night  passed  in  tu- 
mult and  terror.  Armed  bands  were  surging 
through  the  streets.  The  solemn  boom  of  the 
tocsin  floated  mournfully  through  the  air. 
The  shoutings  of  the  populace,  and  the  fre- 
quent explosions  of  artillery  and  musketry,  add- 
ed to  the  general  dismay  and  gloom.  There 
was  no  sleep  in  Paris  that  night.  Fifty  thou- 
sand troops  of  the  line  and  fifty  thousand  of 
the  National  Guard  were  marching  to  their 
appointed  places  of  rendezvous  in  preparation 
for  the  deadly  strife  which  the  morrow  would 
certainly  usher  in.  The  populace  were  no  less 
busy,  organizing  in  military  bands,  collecting 
arms,  throwing  up  barricades,  and  seizing  im- 
portant posts.  Both  parties  were  alike  aware 
that  the  Government  could  place  but  little  re- 
liance upon  the  National  Guard,  as  many  of 
them  were  known  to^be  in  sympathy  with  the 
people. 

A  provisional  government  had  in  reality, 
as  it  were,  organized  itself.  While  Louis  Phi- 
lippe and  his  ministers  were  in  session  at  the 
Tuileries,  Lafayette,  M.  Lafitte,  and  other  dis- 


1832.]    THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      315 


Marshal  Sonlt  in  command. 


tinguished  men,  who  but  a  few  months  before 
had  placed  Louis  Philippe  upon  the  throne, 
were  in  secret  assembly  at  the  mansion  of  M. 
Lafitte,  issuing  orders  for  the  overthrow  of 
that  throne.  Their  orders  were  received  by 
the  leaders  of  the  populace,  and  thus  there 
was  unity  and  efficiency  of  action.* 

During  the  night  there  were  several  bloody 
conflicts,  in  which  the  populace  were  generally 
successful.  With  their  head-quarters  at  the 
Porte  St.  Martin,  and  pushing  out  their  in-" 
trenchments  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  before 
the  dawn  a  large  part  of  the  city  was  under 
their  control.  The  Government  forces  were 
mainly  concentrated  at  the  Tuileries,  the 
Louvre,  and  the  Hotel  de  Ville. 

Marshal  Soult  was  in  command  of  the  royal 
troops.  Wherever  his  sympathies  might  be 
in  the  peculiar  emergency  which  had  risen,  he 
felt  bound  to  be  true  to  his  oath  and  his  col- 
ors. By  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  he  had 
eighty  thousand  men  under  his  command,  in- 
cluding six  thousand  cavalry,  with  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  pieces  of  artillery.  Strong  as 
this  force  was,  it  was  none  too  strong  for  the 
occasion.  There  was  great  consternation  at 

*  Alison,  vol.  vii.,  p.  77. 


316  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


The  conflict. 


the  Tuileries.  To  prevent  the  soldiers  of  the 
National  Guard  from  passing  over  to  the  peo- 
ple, they  were  intermingled  with  the  troops  of 
the  line. 

The  conflict  which  ensued  was  one  of  the 
most  terrible  ever  recorded  in  the  history  of 
insurrections.  Thirty  thousand  compact  royal 
troops,  cavalry,  infantry,  and  artillery,  slowly 
marched  along  the  Boulevards,  battering  down 
the  barricades,  and  sweeping  the  streets  with 
musketry  and  grape-shot.  Another  band  of 
thirty  thousand  traversed,  in  an  equally  san- 
guinary march,  the  streets  which  bordered  the 
banks  of  the  Seine.  They  were  to  meet  at  the 
bridge  of  Austerlitz. 

The  houses  of  Paris  are  of  stone,  five  or  six 
stories  high.  Each  house  became  a  citadel 
filled  with  insurgents,  which  kept  up  a  dead- 
ly fire  upon  the  advancing  columns.  The 
slaughter  on  both  sides  was  dreadful ;  on  ei- 
ther side  was  equal  courage  and  desperation. 
A  very  bloody  struggle  took  place  at  the  Clois- 
ter of  St.  Meri,  which  strong  position  the  insur- 
gents held  with  the  utmost  determination. 

"  The  tocsin,"  writes  Sir  Archibald  Alison, 
"incessantly  sounded  from  the  Church  of  St. 
Meri  to  call  the  Kepublicans  to  the  decisive 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.     317 


The  conflict  at  St.  Meri. 


point;  and  they  were  not  wanting  to  the  ap- 
peal. Young  men,  children  of  twelve  years 
of  age,  old  men  tottering  on  the  verge  of  the 
grave,  flocked  to  the  scene  of  danger  and 

O  /  *—* 

stood  side  by  side  with  the  manly  combatants. 
Never  had  there  been,  in  the  long  annals  of 
revolutionary  conflicts,  such  universal  enthu- 
siasm and  determined  resolution  on  the  part 
of  the  Republicans." 

Before  the  terrific  fire  from  the  windows 
and  from  behind  the  barricade  the  whole  col- 
umn of  royal  troops  at  first  recoiled  and  fled 
back  in  confusion.  But  heavy  artillery  was 
brought  forward ;  a  breach  was  battered 
through  the  barricade ;  shells  were  thrown  be- 
yond to  scatter  the  defenders,  while  an  inces- 
sant storm  of  bullets  penetrated  every  window 
at  which  an  assailant  appeared.  The  royal 
troops  rushed  through  the  breach.  Quarter 
was  neither  given  nor  asked.  On  both  sides 
the  ferocity  of  demons  was  exhibited.  This 
closed  the  conflict.  The  insurrection  was 
crushed.  The  royal  troops  admitted  a  loss  in 
killed  and  wounded  of  417.  The  loss  of  the 
insurgents  can  never  be  known,  as  both  the 
dead  and  the  wounded  were  generally  convey- 
ed away  and  secreted  by  their  friends,, 


318  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


The  insurrection  quelled. 


On  the  morning  of  the  6th,  the  leaders  of 
the  Liberal  party  were  sanguine  of  success. 
But  the  unexpected  display  of  governmental 
force  rendered  the  revolt  hopeless.  The  lead- 
ers, who  had  been  acting  in  entire  secrecy,  dis- 
persed, and  Alison  says  that  they  quietly  slip- 
ped over  to  the  other  side,  and  sought  only  to 
mitigate  the  victor's  wrath.  A  deputation  was 
appointed  by  some  of  the  citizens  to  call  upon 
the  king,  congratulate  him  upon  his  victory,  and 
implore  him  to  temper  justice  with  mercy. 

The  king  angrily  replied,  "  Who  is  responsi- 
ble for  the  blood  which  has  been  shed  ?  The 
miserable  wretches  who  took  advantage  of  the 
funeral  of  General  Lamarque  to  attack  the 
Government  by  open  force.  The  cannons  you 
have  heard  have  demolished  the  barricades  of 
St.  Meri  The  revolt  is  terminated.  I  do  not 
know  why  you  should  suppose  that  violent 
measures  are  to  be  adopted ;  but,  rely  upon  it, 
they  are  loudly  called  for.  I  know  that  the 
press  is  constantly  endeavoring  to  destroy  me; 
but  it  is  by  the  aid  of  falsehood.  I  ask  you,  is 
there  any  person  of  whom  you  have  ever  heard, 
against  whom  a  greater  torrent  of  calumny  has 
been  poured  forth  than  against  myself?"* 
*  Les  Dix  Ans  de  Louis  Philippe,  vol.  iii.,  p,  318. 


1832,]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI,      319 


Severity  of  the  Government 


The  next  morning  a  decree  was  issued  or- 
dering all  the  printing-presses  opposed  to  the 
Government  to  be  broken  to  pieces,  and  substi- 
tuting courts-martial  instead  of  the  ordinary  tri- 
bunals to  try  all  cases  connected  with  the  insur- 
rection. -  The  Government  regarded  the  move- 
ment as  a  combined  attempt  of  the  Repub- 
licans and  the  Legitimists..  Hence  Gamier 
Page's,  the  Democrat,  and  Viscount  Chateau- 
briand, the  Bourbonist,  found  themselves  ar- 
rested as  accomplices  in  the  same  rebellion 

Three  days  after,  on  the  10th  of  June,  Cha- 
teaubriand wrote  from  his  prison  to  M.  Ber- 
tin,  editor  of  Le  Journal  des  Debate,  that  he 
had  refused  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to 
Louis  Philippe,  first  because  his  government 
was  not  founded  upon  legitimate  succession, 
and  second,  that  it  was  not  founded  on  popu- 
lar sovereignty. 

A  few  weeks  after  this,  upon  his  release, 
Chateaubriand  visited  the  young  prince,  Louis 
Napoleon,  who,  in  studious  retirement,  was 
residing  with  his  mother,  Queen  Hortense,  in 
their  beautiful  retreat  at  Arnemberg,  on  the 
Lake  of  Constance.  The  prince  had  just  pub- 
lished a  work  entitled  "Political  Reveries," in 
which  he  took  the  ground  that  the  voice  of  the 


820  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Numerous  prosecutions. 


people  is  the  legitimate  foundation  of  all  gov- 
ernment; that  the  people,  in  the  exercise  of 
universal  suffrage,  should  decide  upon  their 
form  of  government  and  choose  their  rulers. 
Chateaubriand  read  this  treatise  with  much  in- 
terest, suggested  the  substitution  of  the  word 
nation  for  that  of  people,  and  became  personally 
the  warm  friend  of  the  young  prince,  though 
still  adhering  to  the  doctrine  of  legitimacy  and 
to  his  allegiance  to  the  Bourbons.* 

The  government  of  Louis  Philippe  pursued 
and  punished  with  the  greatest  energy  those 
engaged  in  the  revolt.  "  The  number  of  the 
prosecutions,"  writes  Alison,  "exceeded  any 
thing  previously  witnessed,  not  merely  in 
French,  but  in  European  history.  The  re- 
strictions complained  of  during  the  Eestoration 
were  as  nothing  compared  to  it.  From  the  ac- 
cession of  Louis  Philippe  to  the  1st  of  October, 
a  period  of  a  little  more  than  two  years,  there 
occurred  in  France  281  seizures  of  journals 
and  251  judgments  upon  them.  No  less  than 
81  journals  had  been  condemned,  of  which  41 
were  in  Paris  alone.  The  total  number  of 
months  of  imprisonment  inflicted  on  editors 
of  journals  during  this  period  was  1226,  and 
*  (Euvres  de  Napoleon  III.,  t.  i.,  p.  393. 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      321 


The  Duchess  de  Berri. 


the  amount  of  fines  levied  347,550  francs 
[$80,000].  This  is  perhaps  the  hottest  war- 
fare, without  the  aid  of  the  censorship,  ever 
yet  waged,  during  so  short  a  period,  against 
the  liberty  of  the  press.  The  system  of  Louis 
Philippe  was  to  bring  incessant  prosecutions 
against  the  parties  responsible  for  journals, 
without  caring  much  whether  they  were  suc- 
cessful or  not,  hoping  that  he  should  wear 
them  out  by  the  trouble  and  expense  of  con- 
ducting their  defenses."* 

Thus  terminated  the  Eepublican  attempt  to 
overthrow  the  throne  of  Louis  Philippe.  And 
now  let  us  turn  to  an  attempt  of  the  Legiti- 
mists to  accomplish  the  same  end.  About 
eleven  months  after  the  enthronement  of  Louis 
Philippe,  in  March,  1831,  the  Duchess  de  Ber- 
ri, having  obtained  the  reluctant  consent  of 
Charles  X.,  set  out  from  Scotland  for  the 
south  of  France,  to  promote  a  rising  of  the 
Bourbon  party  there  in  favor  of  the  Duke  of 
Bordeaux — whom  we  shall  hereafter  call  by  his 
present  title,  the  Count  de  Chambord — and  to 
march  upon  Paris.  The  Legitimist  party  was 

*  History  of  Europe  from  the  Fall  of  Napoleon  to  the  A^- 
cession  of  Louis  Napoleon,  by  Sir  Archibald  Alison,  vol.  iii., 
p.  82. 

4—21 


322  Louis  PHILIPPE. 


Statement  of  Louis  Blanc. 


rich,  and  was  supported  generally  by  the  cler- 
gy and  by  the  peasantry.  In  the  south  of 
France  and  in  La  Vende'e  that  party  was  very 
strong. 

"The  idea  of  crossing  the  sea  at  the  head  of 
faithful  paladins;  of  landing  after  the  perils 
and  adventures  of  an  unexpected  voyage,  in  a 
country  of  knights-errant;  of  eluding,  by  a 
thousand  disguises,  the  vigilance  of  the  watch- 
ful enemies  through  whom  she  had  to  pass; 
of  wandering,  a  devoted  mother  and  banished 
queen,  from  hamlet  to  hamlet,  and  chateau  to 
chateau;  of  testing  humanity,  high  and  low, 
on  the  romantic  side,  and,  at  the  end  of  a  vic- 
torious conspiracy,  of  rearing  in  France  the 
standard  of  the  monarchy — all  this  was  too 
dazzling  not  to  captivate  a  young  and  high- 
spirited  woman,  bold  through  very  ignorance 
of  the  obstacles  she  had  to  surmount,  heroic  in 
the  hour  of  danger  through  levity;  able  to  en- 
dure all  but  ennui,  and  ready  to  lull  any  mis- 
givings with  the  casuistry  of  a  mother's  love."* 

The  ex-king,  Charles  X.,  who,  having  ab- 
dicated, had  no  power  to  nominate  to  the  re- 
gency, still  issued  a  decree,  dated  Edinburgh, 
March  8th,  1831,  by  which  he  authorized  "a 

*  Louis  Blanc. 


1832.]   THE   DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.     323 

The  reception  of  the  dnchess  in  Italy. 

proclamation  in  favor  of  Henry  V.,  in  which  it 
shall  be  announced  that  Madame,  Duchess  de 
Bern,  is  to  be  regent  of  the  kingdom  during 
the  minority  of  her  son."* 

The  duchess,  assuming  the  title  of  Countess 
of  Segana,  crossed  over  to  Holland,  and,  as- 
cending the  Rhine  and  traversing  the  Tyrol, 
safely  reached  Genoa.  The  King  of  Sardinia, 
Charles  Albert,  received  her  kindly,  and  loan- 
ed her  a  million  francs.  But  the  French  con- 
sul discovered  her  through  her  disguise,  and 
by  order  of  the  French  Court  the  Sardinian 
king  felt  constrained  to  request  her  to  with- 
draw from  his  domains. 

The  Duke  of  Modena  received  her  hospita- 
bly, and  assigned  to  her  use  the  palace  of  Mas- 
sa,  about  three  miles  from  the  sea.  Here,  with 
confidential  advisers,  she  matured  her  plans. 
Secret  agents  were  sent  to  all  the  principal  cit- 
ies in  France,  to  organize  royalist  committees 
and  to  prepare  for  a  general  uprising.  The 
plan  wns  for  the  insurrection  to  break  out  first 
in  the  west  of  France,  to  be  immediately  fol- 
lowed by  all  the  southern  provinces. 

While  affairs  were  in  this  posture,  a  very 

*  By  the  laws  of  France  the  dauphin  attained  his  majoritv 
at  the  age  of  thirteen. 


324  LOUIS     I'll  I  M  1'1'K. 

Abolition  of  the  peerage. 

curious  measure  was  adopted  by  the  Govern- 
ment, which  merits  brief  notice.  The  Cham- 
ber  of  Deputies,  composed  of  the  bourgeoisie, 
voted  the  abolition  of  the  hereditary  peerage. 
This  was  a  constitutional  amendment,  which 
needed  to  be  ratified  by  the  Chamber  of 
Peers.  But  the  Peers  were  not  disposed  thus 
to  commit  suicide.  Louis  Philippe  had  been 
placed  upon  the  throne  by  the  bourgeoisie. 
The  nobles  were  Bourbonists.  He  felt  con- 
strained to  support  the  measures  of  his  friends, 
lie  therefore  created,  by  royal  ordinance,  thirty, 
six  new  peers  to  vote  the  abolition  of  the  peer- 
age, and  thus  the  vote  was  carried.*  A  vote 
was  also  passed  banishing  forever  from  the  soil 
of  France  every  member  of  the  elder  branch 
of  the  house  of  Bourbon.  These  measures,  of 
course,  exasperated  the  friends  of  the  ancient 
regime,  and  rendered  them  more  willing  to  en- 
ter into  a  conspiracy  for  the  dethronement  of 
the  Citizen  King. 

At  Massa  the  duchess  had  assembled  several 
prominent  men  to  aid  her  with  their  advice 

*  In  the  British  House  of  Lords  the  Crown  will  often  carry 
*  measure  by  a  similar  action.  By  the  Constitution  of  the 
Empire  in  France,  under  Napoleon  III.,  this  was  rendered 
impossible. 


1831.]    THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.     325 

Vigilance  aud  severity  of  the  Government. 

and  co-operation.  But,  as  was  to  have  been 
expected,  these  men  soon  quarrelled  among 
themselves.  The  brother  of  the  Duchess  de 
Berri  was  now  King  of  Naples.  But  he  did 
not  dare  to  afford  his  sister  an  asylum,  as  the 
French  Government  threatened,  in  that  case, 
immediately  to  send  a  fleet  and  an  army  from 
Toulon  and  bombard  the  city  of  Naples. 

Proclamations  and  ordinances  were  prepared,. 
to  be  widely  distributed.  A  provisional  gov- 
ernment, to  be  established  in  Paris,  was  organ- 
ized, on  paper,  to  consist  of  the  Marquis  de 
Pastoret,  the  Duke  de  Bellino,  the  Viscount 
Chateaubriand,  and  the  Count  de  Kergarlaz. 

In  the  mean  time  the  officers  of  the  Govern- 
ment were  watching  with  the  utmost  vigilance 
every  movement  in  the  south  of  France,  and 
punishing  with  terrible  severity,  by  shootingr 
bayoneting,  and  hanging,  and  often  without 
trial,  those  who  were  suspected  of  being  im- 
plicated in  the  anticipated  Bourbon  uprising. 
The  duchess  was  much  deceived  by  the  flatter- 
ing reports  she  was  receiving  from  her  friends. 
Though  they  correctly  described  the  intense 
dissatisfaction  of  the  country  with  the  govern- 
ment of  Louis  Philippe,  they  greatly  exagger- 
ated the  numbers  and  the  zeal  of  those  whom 


526  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


A  midnight  adventure. 


they  supposed  to  be  ready  to  rally  around  the 
banner  of  the  Bourbons. 

The  24th  of  April,  1832,  was  fixed  for  the 
departure.  The  utmost  secrecy  was  necessary, 
as  the  spies  of  Louis  Philippe  were  all  around. 
Arrangements  had  been  made  for  a  small 
steamer,  the  Carlo  Alberto,  in  the  darkness  of 
the  night  to  glide  into  the  harbor,  take  on 
board  the  duchess  and  her  suite,  and  convey 
them  to  Marseilles.  It  was  given  out  that  the 
duchess  was  about  to  visit  Florence.  At  night- 
fall of  the  24th  a  travelling  carriage,  with  four 
post-horses,  was  drawn  up  before  the  ducal 
palace.  The  duchess,  with  one  gentleman  and 
three  ladies,  entered,  and  in  the  darkness  the 
carriage  was  rapidly  driven  a  short  distance 
from  the  gate  of  Massa,  when,  upon  some  pre- 
text, it  stopped  for  a  moment  beneath  the  shad- 
ow of  a  high  wall.  While  some  directions  were 
given,  to  engage  the  attention  of  the  postilion, 
the  duchess,  with  Mademoiselle  Lebeschu  and 
M.  de  Brissac,  glided  out  of  the  door  un per- 
ceived, when  the  door  was  shut  and  the  horses 
again  set  out  upr^i  the  gallop  for  Florence. 

The  duchess  and  her  friends  stealthily  moved 
along  under  the  shadow  of  the  wall,  until  they 
reached  a  secluded  spot  upon  the  sea-shore 


1832.]    THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      327 


The  embarkation. 


where  the  steamer  was  expected.  The  ma- 
jor of  a  body  of  troops  in  that  vicinity  joined 
them,  with  a  lantern,  as  a  signal  to  guide  the 
boat  from  the  expected  steamer  to  the  shore. 
Here  they  remained,  in  breathless  silence  and  in 
much  anxiety,  for  an  hour.  Just  as  the  clocks 
in  the  distant  churches  were  tolling  the  hour  of 
midnight,  a  feeble  light  was  seen  far  away  over 
the  water.  It  was  the  Carlo  Alberto,  the  steam- 
er for  which  they  were  waiting.  Rapidly  it  ap- 
proached ;  a  boat  was  sent  ashore.  The  Prin- 
cess Marie  Caroline,  worn  out  with  cares  and 
anxieties,  or — which  is  the  more  probable — 
possessed  of  that  gay,  untroubled  spirit  which 
no  cares  could  agitate,  was  wrapped  in  her 
cloak  and  soundly  asleep  on  the  sand.  Her 
companions  did  not  awake  her  till  the  boat  was 
about  to  touch  the  beach.  It  was  three  o'clock 
in  the  morning.  The  duchess  and  her  suite, 
composing  a  party  of  seven — Mademoiselle 
Lebeschu  being  her  only  lady  attendant — were 
soon  transferred  from  the  shore  to  the  deck  of 
the  Carlo  Alberto. 

All  were  conscious  that  the  enterprise  upon 
which  they  had  embarked  was  perilous  in  the 
extreme.  Its  success  would  greatly  depend 
upon  what  is  called  chance.  The  duchess  ap- 


328  Louis   PjiiLii'i'K.  [lti'6'2. 


The  night  storm. 


peared  calm  and  cheerful,  as  if  determined  not 
to  doubt  of  a  triumphant  result,  and  manifestly 
resolved  to  wipe  from  the  Bourbon  name  the 
charge  of  pusillanimity  which  it  has  so  often 
incurred.  f 

To  avoid  the  French  cruisers  the  Carlo  Al- 
berto kept  far  out  to  sea,  and  did  not  reach 
Marseilles  until  midnight  of  the  28th.  The 
party  was  to  be  landed  near  the  light-house, 
where  a  rendezvous  had  been  fixed  for  the 
small  but  determined  band  who  were  to  meet 
her  there.  The  moment  the  steamer  cast  an- 
chor the  signal  of  two  lanterns  was  raised,  one 
at  the  foremast  head  and  J,he  other  at  the 
mizzen-mast  head,  which  signal  was  instantly 
responded  to  from  the  shore.  Dark  clouds 
had  gathered  in  the  sky,  and  the  meanings  of  a 
rising  gale  and  the  dashings  of  the  surge  added 
to  the  gloom  of  the  hour.  The  gentlemen  who 
were  to  accompany  Marie  Caroline  to  the  shore 
were  dressed  in  the  disguise  of  fishermen.  The 
sea  had  become  so  high  that  it  was  with  diffi- 
culty and  peril  that  the  party  could  embark. 
At  one  time  the  boat  was  dashed  so  furiously 
against  one  of  the  paddle-boxes  of  the  steamer 
that  the  destruction  of  all  on  board  seemed  in- 
evitable. Through  all  these  trying  scenes  the 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERKI.      329 


The  landing  at  Marseilles. 


fragile,  sylph-like  duchess  manifested  intrepid- 
ity which  excited  the  wonder  and  admiration 
of  every  beholder.  The  little  skiff  which  was 
to  convey  her  to  the  beach  soon  disappeared 
in  the  darkness  of  that  stormy  sea. 

The  landing  occurred  without  accident,  and 
Marie  Caroline  scaled  the  rocks,  along  a  path 
which  tried  the  nerves  even  of  the  boldest 
smugglers,  till  she  reached  a  temporary  hut 
which  had  been  reared  to  afford  her  shelter. 
The  vigilance,  however,  of  the  Government 
police  had  not  been  entirely  eluded.  That 
very  evening  the  authorities,  in  some  way,  re- 
ceived the  rumor  that  the  duchess  had  landed, 
or  was  about  to  land,  at  Marseilles,  to  com- 
mence the  uprising  there.  Immediate  and  vig- 
orous preparations  were  adopted  to  quell  it 
The  force  of  every  military  post  was  doubled. 

A  band  of  about  two  thousand  of  her  parti- 
sans was  the  next  morning  assembled  at  an 
appointed  rendezvous  in  the  city.  They  ran 
up  the  white  banner  of  the  Bourbons  upon  the 
spi?e  of  St.  Laurient,  and  began  shouting  vocif- 
erously, "Vive  Henri  Cinq!" — hoping  to  excite 
a  general  insurrection,  and  that  the  whole  pop- 
ulace of  the  city  would  join  them.  They  did 
create  intense  agitation,  and  wonder,  and  be- 


330  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


The  iusnrrectiou. 


wilderment.  Men,  women,  and  children  ran  to 
and  fro,  and  the  alarrn-bells  were  violently  rung 
from  the  steeples.  The  duchess  was  still  in  her 
hut,  waiting  for  the  favorable  moment  in  which 
to  make  her  appearance.  When  she  saw  the 
Bourbon  flag  unfurled  from  St.  Laurient,  she 
was  deluded  by  the  hope  that  the  success  of 
the  enterprise  was  secured. 

But  soon  the  regular  troops  appeared  in 
solid  battalions.  The  crowd  fled  before  them. 
A  few  of  the  insurgents  who  attempted  to 
make  a  stand  were  dispersed  by  a  bayonet 
charge,  their  leaders  captured,  and  the  Bour- 
bon flag  disappeared !  By  one  o'clock  it  was 
all  over — the  emeute  had  utterly  and  hopeless- 
ly failed  1 

Her  despairing  friends  urged  her  immediate- 
ly to  repair  to  the  steamer,  and  to  take  refuge 
with  the  Bourbons  of  Spain.  Heroically  she 
replied,  "I  am  in  France  now,  arid  in  France 
will  I  remain."  We  have  not  space  here  to 
enter  into  the  detail  of  her  wonderful  adven- 
tures, which  she  seemed  to  enjoy  as  if  she  were 
merely  engaged  in  a  school-girl  frolic.  Prob- 
ably she  felt  assured  that  if  she  were  taken 
prisoner,  her  royal  blood,  her  relationship  with 
the  queen,  as  her  niece,  and  the  sympathy  of 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      331 


Wild  adventures. 


most  of  the  courts  of  Europe  in  what  they 
deemed  the  righteousness  of  her  cause,  would 
save  her  from  any  very  severe  treatment. 

"Disguised  as  a  peasant-boy,  and  accompa- 
nied by  no  one  but  Marshal  Bourmont,  also 
in  disguise,  she  set  out  on  foot  to  walk  across 
France,  through  fields  and  by-paths,  a  distance 
of  four  hundred  miles,  to  the  department  of 
La  Vendee,  where  the  Bourbon  party  was  in  its 
greatest  strength.  The  first  night  they  lost 
their  way  in  the  woods.  Utterly  overcome  by 
exhaustion,  the  duchess  sank  down  at  the  foot 
of  a  tree  and  fell  asleep,  while  her  faithful  at- 
tendant stood  sentinel  at  her  side. 

"  There  is  nothing  in  the  pages  of  romance 
more  wild  than  the  adventures  of  this  frivolous 
yet  heroic  woman.  She  slept  in  sheds,  encoun- 
tered a  thousand  hair- breadth  escapes,  and, 
with  great  sagacity,  eluded  the  numerous  bands 
who  were  scouring  the  country  in  quest  of  her. 
At  one  time,  in  an  emergency,  she  threw  her- 
self upon  the  protection  of  a  Republican,  bold- 
ly entering  his  house,  and  saying,  'I  arn  the 
Duchess  of  Berri :  will  you  give  me  shelter?' 
He  did  not  betray  her.  After  such  a  journey 
of  fifty  days,  she  reached,  on  the  17th  of  May, 
the  chateau  of  Plassac,  near  Saintes,  in  La  Ven- 


332  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1832. 


'  Little  Peter." 


de*e,  where  a  general  rising  of  her  friends  was 
appointed  for  the  24th.  Nearly  all  the  Yen- 
de"an  chiefs  were  then  awaiting  the  summons. 
On  the  21st  of  May,  the  duchess — still  in  the 
costume  of  a  young  peasant,  presenting  the 
aspect  of  a  remarkably  graceful  and  beautiful 
boy,  and  taking  the  name  of  'Little  Peter' — 
repaired  on  horseback  to  an  appointed  rendez- 
vous at  Meslier."* 

Here  her  disappointment  was  bitter.  The 
Government  troops  were  on  the  alert,  fully 
prepared  for  any  conflict.  Her  own  friends 
were  despairing.  There  was  no  enthusiasm 
manifested  to  enter  upon  an  enterprise  where 
defeat  and  death  seemed  inevitable.  Passion- 
ately she  entreated  her  friends  not  to  abandon 
her,  delineating  the  great  risks  she  had  run. 
It  was  all  in  vain.  No  general  uprising  could 
be  secured.  There  were  a  few  despairing  con- 
flicts, but  the  feeble  bands  of  the  insurgents 
rapidly  melted  away  before  the  concentration 
of  the  Government  troops. 

Still,  the   duchess   herself  escaped  capture. 
Accompanied  by  a  single  guide,  and  apparent- 
ly insensible  to  hardship  or  peril,  she  wandered 
through  the  woods,  often  sleeping  in  the  open 
*  Abbott's  Life  of  Napoleon  III.,  p.  87. 


1832.]    THE  DUCHESS   DE   BEKKI. 

Perilous  wanderings. 

air,  and  occasionally  carried  upon  the  shoul- 
ders of  her  attendant  through  the  marshes. 

"On  one  occasion,"  writes  Alison,  "when 
the  pursuit  was  hottest,  she  found  shelter  in  a 
ditch  covered  with  bushes,  while  the  soldiers 
in  pursuit  of  her  searched  in  vain,  and  probed 
with  their  bayonets  every  thicket  in  the  wood 
with  which  it  was  environed.  The  variety, 
the  fatigue,  the  dangers  of  her  life,  had  inex- 
pressible charms  for  a  person  of  her  ardent 
and  romantic  disposition.  She  often  said, 
*  Don't  speak  to  me  of  suffering.  I  was  never 
so  happy  at  Naples  or  Paris  as  now.'  "* 

She  took  great  pleasure  in  a  variety  of  dis- 
guises. Sometimes,  in  the  picturesque  cos- 
tume of  a  peasant-girl,  with  coarse  wooden 
shoes  on  her  little  feet,  she  would  enter  a  town 
filled  with  Koyalist  troops,  and  converse  gayly 
with  the  gendarmes  who  guarded  the  gates. 
The  coasts  of  France  were  so  watched  by  Gov- 
ernmental vessels  as  to  render  her  escape  by 
water  almost  impossible.  She  consequently 
decided  to  seek  a  retreat  in  Nantes,  a  city  in 
which  she  had  so  few  adherents  that  no  one 
would  suspect  her  taking  refuge  there. 

In  the  disguise  of  a  peasant-girl,  with  one 

*  Alison. 


334:  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Letter  to  the  queen. 


female  companion,  she  entered  the  city,  and 
was  concealed  by  a  few  friends  who  perilled 
their  lives  in  so  doing.  For  several  months 
she  eluded  all  the  efforts  of  the  Government 
to  find  her.  In  the  mean  time,  the  partisans 
df  the  duchess  were  pursued  and  punished 
with  the  most  terrible  severity.  No  mercy 
was  shown  them.  The  duchess,  from  her  re- 
treat, kept  up  a  lively  correspondence  with 
her  friends,  still  hoping  that  fortune  might 
turn  in  her  favor.  Pleading  in  behalf  of  these 
men,  she  wrote  as  follows  to  her  aunt,  the 
queen : 

"  Whatever  consequences  may  result  for 
me,  from  the  position  in  which  I  have  placed 
myself  while  fulfilling  my  duties  as  a  mother, 
I  will  never  speak  to  you,  madame,  of  my  own 
interests.  But  brave  men  have  become  in- 
volved in  danger  for  my  son's  sake,  and  I  can 
not  forbear  from  attempting  whatever  may  be 
done  with  honor,  in  order  to  save  them. 

"I  therefore  entreat  my  aunt,  whose  good- 
ness of  heart  and  religious  sentiment  are 
known  to  me,  to  exert  all  her  credit  in  their 
behalf.  The  bearer  of  this  letter  will  furnish 
details  respecting  their  situation.  He  will 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      335 


The  letter  returned. 


state  that  the  judges  given    them   are   men 
against  whom  they  have  fought 

"Notwithstanding  the  actual  difference  in 
our  positions,  a  volcano  is  under  your  feet, 
madame,  as  you  know.  I  knew  your  alarm — 
your  very  natural  alarm — at  a  period  when  I 
was  in  safety,  and  I  was  not  insensible  to  it. 
God  alone  knows  what  He  destines  for  us,  and 
perhaps  you  will  one  day  thank  me  for  having 
had  confidence  in  your  goodness,  and  for  hav- 
ing given  you  an  opportunity  of  exerting  it  in 
behalf  of  my  unfortunate  friends.  Rely  on 
my  gratitude.  I  wish  you  happiness,  madame, 
for  I  think  too  highly  of  you  to  believe  it  pos- 
sible that  you  can  be  happy  in  your  present 
situation.  MARIE  CAROLINE." 

This  letter  was  conveyed  to  the  queen  at  St. 
Cloud.  She  probably  read  it ;  but  it  was  im- 
mediately returned  to  the  bearer,  who  was  in 
waiting,  with  the  declaration  that  the  queen 
could  not  receive  it.  Five  months  had  now 
elapsed  since  the  duchess  entered  Nantes.  It 
is  by  some  supposed  that  Louis  Philippe  did 
not  wish  to  have  her  arrested.  He  would  be 
fearfully  embarrassed  to  know  what  to  do  with 
her.  It  would  hardly  do  to  Testore  her  to  lib- 


336  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Note  from  Louis  Blanc. 


erty  while  her  partisans  were  cruelly  punished 
with  death.  It  was  not  easy  to  decide  upon 
the  tribunal  which  would  sit  in  judgment  upon 
her.  The  peerage  would  have  recoiled  with 
horror  from  passing  judgment  upon  a  princess, 
who  endeavored  to  gain  the  throne  for  a  child, 
who  was  entitled  to  that  throne  by  the  avowed 
principles  of  legitimacy. 

A  renegade  Jew,  by  the  name  of  Deutz,  at 
length  betrayed  her.  By  the  most  villainous 
treachery  he  obtained  an  interview  with  the 
duchess,  and  then  informed  the  police  of  the 
place  of  her  retreat.  It  was  the  6th  of  No- 
vember. In  the  following  words  Louis  Blanc 
describes  the  preparations  made  for  her  ar- 
rest: 

"  The  first  communication  between  M.  Thiers 
and  Deutz  took  place  under  the  following  cir- 
cumstances :  M.  Thiers  one  day  received  a  let- 
ter wherein  a  stranger  begged  him  to  repair  in 
the  evening  to  the  Champs  Elysees,  promising 
to  make  him  a  communication  of  the  very 
highest  importance.  At  the  appointed  hour 
he  proceeded  to  the  Champs  Elyse'es,  with  a 
brace  of  pistols  ready  in  his  coat-pockets.  At 
the  spot  indicated  in  the  letter  he  perceived  a 
man  standing,  who  seemed  agitated  with  fear 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.     337 


The  traitor  Deutz. 


and  doubt.  He  approached  and  accosted  this 
man.  It  was  Deutz.  A  conference  was  opened, 
which  ended  in  a  base  crime.  The  next  night, 
by  an  arrangement  of  the  police,  Deutz  was 
introduced  into  the  office  of  the  Minister  of  the 
Interior.  '  You  can  make  a  good  thing  of  this,' 
said  M.  Thiers. '  The  Jew  shook  with  agita- 
tion at  the  idea;  his  limbs  trembled  under 
him,  and  his  countenance  changed.  The  price 
of  the  treachery  was  settled  without  difficulty." 
No  sooner  had  Deutz  withdrawn  than  bay- 
onets glittered  in  every  direction,  and  commis- 
sioners of  police  rushed  into  the  house,  with 
pistols  in  their  hands.  The  duchess  had  bare- 
ly time  to  take  refuge,  with  three  companions, 
in  a  small  recess  behind  the  fire-place,  which 
was  adroitly  concealed  by  an  iron  plate  back 
of  the  chimney.  The  police  commenced  a  mi- 
nute search,  calling  masons  in  to  aid  them. 
The  walls  were  sounded  with  hammers,  arti 
cles  of  furniture  moved  and  broken  open. 
Night  came  while  the  search  continued.  The 
space  in  which  they  were  confined  was  very 
narrow,  with  but  one  small  aperture  for  the 
admission  of  air.  They  barely  escaped  suffo- 
cation by  applying  their  mouths  in  turn  to 
this  hole,  but  three  inches  in  diameter. 
4—22 


338  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Discovery  and  arrest. 


The  gendarmes,  fully  satisfied  that  the  duch- 
ess must  be  concealed  somewhere  in  the  house, 
took  possession  of  the  room  and  lighted  a  fire 
in  the  chimney,  which  converted  their  hiding- 
place  into  a  hot  oven.  The  heat  soon  became 
insupportable.  The  iron  plate  had  become 
red-hot.  One  of  the  prisoners  kicked  it  down, 
and  said,  "  We  are  coming  out ;  take  away  the 
fire."  The  fire  was  instantly  brushed  away, 
and  the  duchess  and  her  companions,  after 
having  endured  sixteen  hours  of  almost  insup- 
portable torture,  came  forth  in  great  exhaus- 
tion, and  yet  the  duchess  almost  gayly  said, 
referring  to  the  ancient  martyr  roasted  upon  a 
gridiron, 

"  Gentlemen,  you  have  made  war  upon  me 
el  la  St.  Laurent  I  have  nothing  to  reproach 
myself  with.  I  have  only  discharged  the  duty 
of  a  mother  to  gain  the  inheritance  of  her 
son."* 

The  captive  was  treated  with  the  respect 
due  to  her  rank.  After  a  brief  confinement  at 
Nantes,  she  was  transferred  to  the  citadel  of 
Blaye,  one  of  the  most  gloomy  of  prisons,  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  Gironde.  All  the  effects 
of  this  princess  of  royal  birth,  who  had  enter- 
*  Memoires  de  la  Duchesse  de  Berri,  pp.  87-90. 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.     339 


Imprisonment  at  Blaye. 


ed  France  as  regent,  were  tied  up  in  a  pock- 
et-handkerchief. Measures  were  apparently 
adopted  to  keep  her  in  close  captivity,  without 
trial,  for  a  long  time.  The  fortress  was  thor- 
oughly manned  with  nine  hundred  men,  and 
put  in  a  state  of  defense,  as  if  anticipating  a 
siege.  Three  gun-boats  were  stationed  in  the 
river.  The  small  building  within  the  walls  of 
the  citadel,  which  was  assigned  to  the  duchess, 
was  surrounded  with  a  double  row  of  pali- 
sades ten  or  twelve  feet  high.  The  windows 
were  covered  with  strong  iron  bars,  and  even 
the  apertures  of  the  chimneys  were  closed  with 
an  iron  grating.  Even  the  gay  spirit  of  the 
princess  was  subdued  by  the  glooms  in  which 
she  was  enveloped. 

Still,  from  many  eminent  men  of  her  own 
party  she  received  gratifying  proofs  of  fidelity. 
Chateaubriand  issued  an  eloquent  pamphlet 
which  won  the  applause  of  the  Legitimists 
throughout  Europe.  In  this  he  had  the  bold- 
ness to  exclaim,  "Madame,  your  son  is  my 
king."  In  a  letter  of  condolence  to  the  prin- 
cess, in  which  he  offered  his  professional  serv- 
ices in  her  defense,  he  said  : 

"MADAME, — You  will  deem  it  inconsiderate, 


340  Loyis   PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


The  terrible  secret. 


obtrusive,  that  at  such  a  moment  as  this  I 
entreat  you  to  grant  me  a  favor,  but  it  is  the 
high  ambition  of  my  life.  I  would  earnestly 
solicit  to  be  numbered  among  your  defenders. 
I  have  no  personal  title  to  the  great  favor  I 
solicit  of  your  new  grandeur,  but  I  venture  to 
implore  it  in  memory  of  a  prince  of  whom  you 
deigned  to  name  me  historian,  and  in  the  name 
of  my  family's  blood.  It  was  my  brother's 
glorious  destiny  to  die  with  his  illustrious 
grandfather,  M.  de  Malesherbes,  the  defender 
of  Louis  XVI.,  the  same  day,  the  same  hour, 
for  the  same  cause,  and  upon  the  same  scaf- 
fold. CHATEAUBRIAND." 

But  a  terrible  secret  was  soon  whispered 
abroad,  which  overwhelmed  the  princess  with 
shame,  and  which  filled  the  court  of  Louis 
Philippe  with  joy,  as  it  silenced  all  voices 
which  would  speak  in  her  favor.  It  became 
evident  that  the  duchess  was  again  to  become 
a  mother.  For  a  princess,  the  child,  sister,  and 
mother  of  a  king,  secretly  to  marry  some  un- 
known man,  was  deemed  as  great  a  degrada- 
tion as  such  a  person  could  be  guilty  of.  The 
shame  was  as  great  as  it  would  be  in  New 
Vork  for  the  daughter  of  a  millionaire  secretly 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BEKKI.      341 


The  marriage  announcement. 


to  marry  a  negro  coachman.  It  consigned  the 
princess  to  irremediable  disgrace.  But  the 
situation  in  which  she  found  herself  compelled 
her  to  acknowledge  her  marriage.  The  univers- 
al assumption  was  that  she  had  not  been  mar- 
ried. Secrecy  divests  marriage  of  its  sanctity. 

The  sufferings  through  which  the  princess 
passed  were  awful.  No  pen  can  describe 
them.  Could  she  but  be  released  from  prison, 
her  shame  might  be  concealed.  Her  tears  and 
entreaties  were  all  unavailing.  Louis  Phi- 
lippe, unmindful  that  the  princess  was  the 
niece  of  his  wife,  deemed  that  the  interests  of 
his  dynasty  required  that  she  should  be  held 
with  a  firm  grasp  until  the  birth  of  her  child 
should  consign  her  to  ignominy  from  which 
there  could  be  no  redemption. 

On  the  22d  of  February,  1833,  the  duchess 
placed  in  the  hands  of  General  Bugeaud,  gov- 
ernor of  the  citadel  of  Blaye,  the  following 
declaration: 

"  Urged  by  circumstances,  and  by  the  meas- 
ures ordered  by  the  Government,  though  I 
had  the  strongest  reason  to  keep  my  marriage 
secret,  I  think  it  a  duty  to  myself  and  my 
children  to  declare  that  I  was  secretly  married 
during  my  residence  in  Italy." 


342  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


Humiliations  of  the  duchess. 


To  a  friend,  M.  de  Mesnard,  she  wrote:  "  I 
feel  as  if  it  would  kill  me  to  tell  you  what  fol- 
lows, but  it  must  be  done.  Vexatious  annoy- 
ances,  the  order  to  leave  me  alone  with  spies, 
the  certainty  that  I  can  not  get  out  till  Sep- 
tember, could  alone  have  determined  me  to 
declare  my  secret  marriage." 

The  humiliations  to  which  the  unhappy 
duchess  was  compelled  to  submit  were  dread- 
ful. The  detail  would  be  only  painful  to  our 
readers.  On  the  morning  of  the  10th  of  May 
a  daughter  was  born,  whom  God  kindly,  ere 
long,  removed  to  another  world.  The  fact, 
minutely  authenticated,  was  proclaimed  to  all 
Europe.  Thus  far  Marie  Caroline  had  kept 
secret  the  name  of  her  husband.  But  it  was 
now  necessary  that  his  name  should  be  given, 
to  secure  the  legitimacy  of  her  child.  It  was 
then  announced,  by  the  officiating  physician  to 
the  group  of  officials  which  the  Government 
had  placed  around  her  bed,  that  the  father  of 
the  child  was  Count  Hector  Sucheri  Palli,  gen- 
tleman of  the  chamber  to  the  King  of  the  Two 
Sicilies. 

In  commenting  upon  these  events,  Louis 
Blanc  writes :  "  The  partisans  of  the  new  dy- 
nasty exulted  with  indecent  zeal  at  the  event 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      343 


Comments  of  Louis  Blanc. 


of  which  the  ministers  had  so  well  prepared 
the  scandal.  The  Republicans  only  manifest- 
ed the  contempt  they  felt  for  this  ignoble  tri- 
umph. As  for  the  Legitimists,  they  were 
overwhelmed  with  consternation.  Some  of 
them,  however,  still  persisted  in  their  daring 
incredulity;  and  they  did  not  hesitate  to  de- 
nounce the  document,  upon  which  their  ene- 
mies relied  as  the  denouement  of  an  intrigue 
which  had  begun  with  violence  and  ended 
with  a  lie.  Separated  from  her  friends,  de- 
prived of  their  counsels,  dead  to  the  world,  to 
the  laws,  to  society,  was  it  possible  for  Marie 
Caroline  to  make  any  valid  deposition  against 
herself,  and  that,  too,  surrounded  by  her  ac- 
cusers, by  her  keepers,  by  the  men  who  had 
vowed  her  destruction  ?" 

Thus,  while  one  party  affirmed  that  there 
was  no  truth  in  the  alleged  birth  or  marriage, 
the  Orleanists  declared  that  the  Duchess  of 
Berri  had  not  only  given  birth  to  a  child  of  no 
legitimate  parentage,  but  that  the  Duke  of 
Bordeaux,  who  was  born  seven  months  after 
the  assassination  of  the  Duke  of  Berri,  was 
also  the  child  of  dishonored  birth,  and  had, 
therefore,  no  title  whatever  to  the  crown. 
Such  is  the  venom  of  political  partisanship. 


Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1832. 


The  duchess  liberated. 


On  the  8th  of  June,  Marie  Caroline,  who 
could  no  longer  claim  the  title  of  Regent  of 
France,  but  who  had  sunk  to  the  lowly  condi- 
tion of  the  wife  of  an  Italian  count,  was  liber- 
ated from  prison.  She  had  fallen  into  utter 
disgrace,  and  was  no  longer  to  be  feared. 
With  her  child  and  her  nurse,  abandoned  by 
those  friends  who  had  gathered  around  the  re- 
gent, she  sailed  for  Palermo.  Her  brother,  the 
king,  received  her  kindly,  and  she  was  joined 
by  Count  Lucheri  Palli.  Few  troubled  them- 
selves to  inquire  whether  she  were  ever  married 
to  the  count  or  not.  We  hear  of  her  no  more. 

These  events  broke  up  the  Legitimists  into 
three  parties.  The  one  assumed  that,  under 
the  circumstances,  the  abdication  of  Charles  X. 
was  not  to  be  regarded  as  binding;  that  he 
was  still  king,  and  to  him  alone  they  owed 
their  allegiance.  The  second  took  the  posi- 
tion that,  in  consequence  of  th'e  suspicions  cast 
upon  the  birth  of  the  Duke  of  Bordeaux,  the 
abdication  in  favor  of  the  duke  was  null,  and 
that  the  dauphin,  the  Duke  de  Angoulerne, 
was  the  legitimate  heir  to  the  crown.  The 
third  party  still  adhered  to  the  Duke  of  Bor- 
deaux, recognizing  him  as  king,  under  the  ti- 
tle of  Henry  Y.  Thus  terminated  in  utter 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI.      345 


Death  of  the  Duke  of  Reichstadt. 


failure  the  Legitimist  endeavor  to  overthrow 
the  throne  of  Louis  Philippe. 

While  these  scenes  were  transpiring,  the 
Duke  of  Reichstadt,  the  only  son  of  Napoleon 
I.,  and,  by  the  votes  of  the  French  people, 
the  legitimate  heir  to  the  throne  of  the  Em- 
pire, died  in  Vienna,  on  the  22d  of  July,  1832. 
Commenting  upon  .  this  event,  Louis  Blanc 
writes : 

"  In  a  calm,  lovely  day,  there  was  seen  ad- 
vancing through  a  perfectly  silent  crowd,  along 
the  streets  of  that  capital  of  Austria  which 
once  looked  down  abashed  and  terror-struck 
beneath  the  proud  eagles  of  Napoleon,  a 
hearse,  preceded  by  a  coach  and  a  few  horse- 
men. Some  attendants  walked  on  either  side, 
bearing  torches.  When  they  arrived  at  the 
church,  the  court  commissioner,  in  pursuance 
of  a  remarkable  custom  of  the  country,  pro- 
ceeded to  enumerate  the  names  and  titles  of 
the  deceased.  Then,  knocking  at  the  door,  he 
solicited  for  the  corpse  admission  to  the  temple. 
The  princes  and  princesses  of  the  house  of  Aus- 
tria were  there  awaiting  the  body,  and  attend- 
ed it  to  the  vault,  into  which  the  fortune  of  the 
Empire  then  descended  forever.  The  death 
of  the  son  of  Napoleon  occasioned  no  surprise 


346  Louis   PHILIPPE.          [1832. 


Louis  Napoleon. 


among  the  nations.  It  was  known  that  he 
was  of  a  very  sickly  constitution,  and  besides 
poison  had  been  spoken  of.  Those  who  think 
every  thing  possible  to  the  fear  or  ambition' 
of  princes  had  said,  He  bears  too  great  a  name 
to  live." 

The  attempts  subsequently  made  by  Louis 
Napoleon  for  the  restoration  of  the  Empire, 
which  failed  at  Strasbourg  and  Bologne,  but 
which  finally  gave  the  Empire  to  France 
through  twenty  years  of  unparalleled  prosper- 
ity, we  have  not  space  here  to  record.  They 
will  be  found  minutely  detailed  in  Abbott's 
History  of  Napoleon  III. 

In  reference  to  these  unsuccessful  attempts, 
Louis  Blanc  writes  :  "  Of  the  two  sons  of  the 
ex -king  of  Holland,  Napoleon's  brother,  the 
elder,  we  have  seen,  had  perished  in  the  Italian 
troubles,  by  a  death  as  mysterious  as  prema- 
ture. The  younger  had  retired  to  Switzer- 
land, where  he  applied  himself  unceasingly  to 
the  preparation  of  projects  that  flattered  his 
pride  and  responded  to  the  most  earnest  aspi- 
rations of  his  soul. 

"  Nephew  to  him  whom  France  called  the 
Emperor,  the  emperor  par  excellence  (impera- 
tor),  and  condemned  to  the  vexations  of  an  ob- 


1832.]   THE  DUCHESS  DE  BERRI       347 


Statement  of  Louis  Blanc. 


scure  youth ;  having  to  avenge  his  proscribed 
kindred,  while  himself  exiled  by  an  unjust  law, 
from  a  country  he  loved,  and  of  which  it 
might  be  said,  without  exaggeration,  that  Na- 
poleon still  covered  it  with  his  shadow — Lou- 
is Bonaparte  believed  himself  destined  at  once 
to  uphold  the  honor  of  his  name,  to  punish  the 
persecutors  of  his  family,  and  to  open  to  his 
disgraced  country  some  way  to  glory. 

"His  design  was  to  make  trial  of  the  pres- 
tige of  his  name  to  overthrow  the  Orleans  dy- 
nasty, after  which  he  would  convoke  the  peo- 
ple, consult  and  obey  it.  Nothing  is  more  cer- 
tain than  that  this  respect  for  the  principle 
of  the  sovereignty  of  the  people  was  perfectly 
sincere  and  honest  on  the  part  of  the  young 
prince.  But  the  hopes  with  which  he  flattered 
his  ambition  were  not  the  less  grand  on  that 
account.  Heir  to  the  imperial  tradition,  might 
he  not  be  the  choice  of  the  people  ? 

"  He  was  generous,  enterprising,  prompt  in 
military  exercises,  and  the  uniform  sat  upon 
him  with  a  manly  grace.  There  was  no  braver 
officer — no  more  gallant  cavalier.  Though 
the  expression  of  his  countenance  was  gentle, 
rather  than  energetic  and  imperious — though 
there  was  an  habitual  languor  in  his  looks, 


348  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1836. 


Death  of  Charles  X. 


often  dashed  with  thought,  no  doubt  the  sol- 
diers would  love  him  for  his  frank  bearing,  his 
honest  and  hearty  speech,  his  small  figure,  re- 
sembling his  uncle's,  and  the  imperial  lightning 
which  the  passion  of  the  moment  kindled  in 
his  blue  eye.  What  a  name,  too,  was  his  I"* 

Charles  X.  was  overwhelmed  by  his  misfor- 
tunes. His  health  rapidly  failed.  He  was 
often  heard  to  say,  "  The  day  is  not  far  distant 
that  shall  witness  the  funeral  of  the  poor  old 
man."  On  the  morning  of  November  4,  1836, 
he  was  seized  with  a  chill,  while  temporarily 
residing  at  Goritz,  in  Styria.  It  proved  an 
attack  of  cholera.  His  sufferings  were  severe, 
but  he  was  calm  and  resigned,  and  conversed 
freely  upon  the  eternity  opening  before  him. 
The  Duke  of  Bordeaux  and  his  sister  were 
brought  into  the  room  to  receive  his  blessing. 
He  placed  his  trembling  hands  upon  their  heads 
and  said,  "God  protect  you,  my  children.  Walk 
in  the  ways  of  righteousness ;  do  not  forget  me; 
pray  for  me  sometimes."  A  deep  lethargy 
came  upon  him ;  and,  after  a  few  hours  of  ap- 
parent insensibility,  he  breathed  his  last,  at  tha 
age  of  79  years. 

*  "The  History  of  Ten  Tears,"  by  Louis  Blanc,  voL  iL, 
p.  453. 


1833.]    THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE. 


Letter  to  Louis  Napoleon. 


CHAPTER  XI. 
THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE. 

Liberal  party  in  France,  despairing  of 
any  effectual  reform  under  the  govern- 
ment of  Louis  Philippe,  began  to  turn  their 
thoughts  to  the  re-establishment  of  the  Empire 
under  Louis  Napoleon,  a  young  prince,  the 
nephew  and  heir  of  Napoleon  L,  then  residing 
in  studious  seclusion  at  Arnemberg,  in  Switz- 
erland. The  prince  had  already  obtained 
some  celebrity  by  his  writings  in  favor  of  pop- 
ular rights.  One  of  the  leading  republicans 
wrote  to  him : 

"  The  life  of  the  king  is  daily  threatened.  If 
one  of  these  attempts  should  succeed,  we  should 
be  exposed  to  the  most  serious  convulsions ;  for 
there  is  no  longer  in  France  any  party  which 
can  lead  the  others,  nor  any  man  who  can  in- 
ipire  general  confidence.  The  great  name 
which  you  bear,  your  opinions,  your  character, 
every  thing,  induces  us  to  see  in  you  a  point  of 
Tallying  for  the  popular  cause.  Hold  yourself 


3oO  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1838 

Honors  to  the  memory  of  Napoleon  L 

ready  for  action.  When  the  time  shall  come, 
your  friends  will  not  fail  you."* 

Every  month  there  seemed  to  be  rising  en- 
thusiasm in  respect  to  the  Napoleonic  name. 
Louis  Philippe  had  but  just  taken  his  seat  upon 
the  throne,  when  a  petition  was  presented  to 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies  praying  that  the  re- 
mains of  the  Emperor  might  be  claimed  of  the 
British  Government,  and  transferred  from  St. 
Helena  to  Paris.  In  a  speech  made  by  M. 
Mortigny,  on  the  occasion,  he  said  : 

"Napoleon  established  order  and  tranquil- 
lity in  our  country:  he  led  our  armies  to  vic- 
tory: his  sublime  genius  put  an  end  to  anar- 
chy: his  military  glory  made  the  French  name 
respected  throughout  the  world,  and  his  name 
will  ever  be  pronounced  with  emotion  and 
veneration." 

In  the  Place  Vendome  a  column  was  reared 
in  commemoration  of  the  deeds  of  the  French 
army.  It  had  been  surmounted  by  the  statue 
of  Napoleon.  The  Allies  tore  down  the  effigy. 
The  people  now  demanded  that  the  statue 
should  be  restored.  The  Government  could 
not  refuse.  On  the  28th  of  July,  1833,  the 
statue  of  the  emperor  again  rose  to  that  proud 
*  Vie  de  Louis  Napoleon,  t.  i.,  p.  22. 


1836.]    THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.         351 


The  Arc  de  1'Etoile. 


summit,  in  the  midst  of,  apparently,  the  uni- 
versal acclaim  of  Paris  and  France. 

On  the  1st  of  August,  1834,  a  statue  of  the 
emperor  was  placed  in  the  court-yard  of  the 
Koyal  Hotel  des  Invalides,  accompanied  by  as 
imposing  civil  and  religious  ceremonies  as 
France  bad  ever  witnessed. 

In  the  year  1806,  Napoleon  L  had  laid  the 
foundations  of  the  Arc  de  1'fitoile,  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  most  superb  avenue  in  the  world. 
The  people  now  demanded  the  completion  of 
the  monument.  Preparations  were  made  for 
a  magnificent  fete  on  the  29th  of  July,  1836, 
when  the  completed  arc  was  to  be  unveiled. 
But  Louis  Philippe  had  become  so  excessively 
unpopular,  he  was  so  incessantly  pursued  by 
assassins,  that  it  was  not  deemed  safe  for  him 
to  appear  at  the  ceremony.  The  magnificent 
monument  was  unveiled  without  any  ceremo- 
ny—  the  Moniteur  proclaiming  to  Europe  the 
humiliating  declaration  that  the  king  could 
no  longer  with  safety  appear  in  the  streets  of 
Paris.  "The  soil,"  writes  a  French  annalist, 
"  was  so  sown  with  assassins  that  there  was  no 
safety  for  the  monarch  but  within  the  walls  of 
his  palace."* 

*  Alison,  vol.  fil,  p.  206. 


352  Louis  PHILIPPE  [1840. 


The  "Target  King." 


All  over  the  kingdom  insurrections  were 
constantly  bursting  out,  and  there  were  bloody 
conflicts  in  Lyons,  Marseilles,  and  other  places. 
And  now  the  demand  became  irresistible  for 
the  transfer  of  the  remains  of  Napoleon  to 
Paris.  Such  a  scene  of  national  homage  as  this 
-great  occasion  manifested  the  world  never  wit- 
nessed before.  In  1840,  the  eyes  of  the  world 
were  fixed  upon  this  grand  funereal  pageant. 
The  honored  remains  were  transferred  from 
the. lonely  grave  at  St.  Helena,  placed  beneath 
the  dome  of  the  Invalides,  and  over  those 
remains  a  nation's  gratitude  has  reared  a  mou- 
ument  which  attracts  the  admiration  of  the 
world. 

But  these  reluctant  yieldings  to  popular  sen- 
timent did  not  add  to  the  popularity  of  Louis 
Philippe.  He  was  shot  at  so  frequently  that 
he  received  the  sobriquet  of  the  Target  King  ! 
A  volume  might  be  filled  with  the  recital  of 
the  foul  attempts  to  assassinate  him.  His  days 
must  have  passed  in  constant  wretchedness. 
lie  was  assailed  in  low  blackguardism  in  the 
journals:  he  was  assailed  with  envenomed  elo- 
quence, by  such  men  as  Lamartine,  at  the  ban- 
quets ;  and  his  path  was  dogged,  with  dag- 
ger and  pistol,  by  such  brutal  wretches  as 


4—23 


1842.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.         355 


Death  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


Eieschi,  Boirier  Meunier,  Alibaud,  and  many 
others. 

Louis  Philippe,  in  the  relations  of  private 
life,  was  one  of  the  best  of  men.  His  charac- 
ter had  been  formed  in  the  school  of  misfor- 
tune. He  was  not  a  man  of  generous  affec- 
tions; the  fearful  discipline  through  which  he 
had  passed  rendered  this  almost  impossible. 
He  was  greedy  of  money,  and  exceedingly 
desirous  of  aggrandizing  his  family  by  such 
matrimonial  alliances  as  would  strengthen  his 
dynasty. 

On  the  13th  of  July,  1842,  the  king  expe- 
rienced one  of  the  heaviest  calamities  of  his 
life — a  calamity  quite  irreparable.  His  eldest 
son,  who,  upon  the  enthronement  of  his  father, 
had  taken  the  title  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans, 
was  a  very  noble  young  man,  quite  popular 
with  the  people  and  in  the  army.  He  was  be- 
lieved to  be  far  more  liberal  in  his  views  than 
his  father.  He  was  driving  in  his  carriage  from 
Paris  to  Neuilly ;  the  horses  took  fright,  and 
the  driver  lost  his  control  over  them.  The 
duke  endeavored  to  leap  from  the  carriage; 
his  head  struck  the  ground,  and  his  brairi  was 
so  injured  that  he  breathed  but  a  few  hours,  in 
insensibility,  and  died.  Thus  sadly  the  direct 


356  Louis   PHILIPPE.          [1842. 


'I'l.c  (  'mint  <lr  ]';iii*. 


heir  to  the  tbrone  was  cut  off.  The  succession 
reverted  to  his  son,  the  Count  of  Paris  —  an 
infant  child,  then  in  the  arms  of  its  nurse. 

This  young  man — who  subsequently  married 
his  cousin,  a  daughter  of  the  Duke  of  Mont- 
pensier,  and  who  has  been  residing  much  of 
the  time  at  Twickenham,  in  England — is,  at 
the  present  writing,  the  Orleans  candidate  for 
the  throne  of  France.  He  is  deemed  a  worthy 
man — has  two  children,  but  never  has  been 
placed  in  circumstances  to  develop  any  marked 
traits  of  character.  As  the  Count  of  Chambord 
has  no  children,  upon  his  death  the  Count  of 
Paris  becomes  the  legitimate  candidate  for  the 
throne. 

The  Count  of  Chambord  had  married  the 
Archduchess  Maria  Theresa-Beatrice,  of  Mode- 
na,  eldest  sister  of  the  reigning  duke  of  that 
principality,  and  the  only  prince  in  Europe 
who  had  refused  to  recognize  Louis  Philippe. 
"  It  was  a  singular  proof  oJ  the  mutations  of 
fortune  that  the  direct  descendant  of  Louis 
XIV.  deemed  himself  fortunate  upon  being  ad- 
mitted into  the  family  of  a  third-rate  Italian 
potentate."* 

Louis  Philippe,  during  his  reign  of  about 

*  Alison,  vol.  viii.,  p.  193. 


1848.]     THE  FINAL   STRUGGLE.        357 

Testimony  of  Louis  Blanc. 

eighteen  years,  encountered  nothing  but  trou- 
ble. The  advocates  of  legitimacy  —  of  the 
divine  right  of  kings  —  regarded  him  as  an 
usurper.  As  the  voice  of  the  nation  was  not 
consulted  in  placing  him  upon  the  throne,  the 
masses  of  the  people  deemed  themselves  de- 
frauded of  their  rights,  and  hated  him,  as  the 
representative  only  of  the  moneyed  aristocracy 
of  Paris.  The  bitterness  with  which  he  was 
assailed  by  the  Liberal  party  may  be  inferred 
from  the  following  extract  from  the  "Kevolu- 
tion  of  1848,"  by  Louis  Blanc: 

"  Whatever  may  have  been  the  baseness  of 
Home  under  the  Caesars,  it  was  equalled  by 
the  corruption  in  France  in  the  reign  of  Louis 
Philippe.  Nothing  like  it  had  ever  been  wit- 
nessed in  history.  The  thirst  for  gold  having 
obtained  possession  of  minds  agitated  by  im- 
pure desires,  society  terminated  by  sinking  into 
a  brutal  materialism.  The  formula  of  selfish- 
ness, every  one  by  himself  and  for  himself,  had 
been  adopted  by  the  sovereign  as  the  maxim  of 
state;  and  that  maxim,  alike  hideous  and  fatal, 
had  become  the  ruling  principle  of  govern- 
ment. It  was  the  device  of  Louis  Philippe — 
a  prince  gifted  with  moderation,  knowledge, 
tolerance,  humanity,  but  skeptical,  destitute  of 


358  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


Opposition  of  the  kin^. 


either  nobility  of  heart  or  elevation  of  mind—- 
the most  experienced  corrupter  of  the  human 
race  that  ever  appeared  on  earth  !" 

There  were  thirty-four  millions  of  people  in 
France.  Of  these,  but  one  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  of  the  richest  proprietors  enjoyed  the 
right  of  suffrage.  Consequently,  the  laws  were 
framed  to  favor  the  rich.  All  the  efforts  of  the 
people  to  secure  a  reform  of  the  electoral  law- 
proved  unavailing.  The  agitation  of  the  sub- 
ject increased  every  year,  and  the  cry  for  parlia- 
mentary reform  was  ever  growing  louder  and 
more  menacing.  Many  of  the  illustrious  men 
in  France  joined  this  reform  party.  Among 
•others,  there  were  M.  Lafitte,  the  wealthy 
banker,  M.  Odillon  Barrot,  the  renowned  ad 
vocate,  and  M.  Arago,  the  distinguished  phi 
losopher. 

We  may  search  history  in  vain  for  the  record 
of  any  monarch  so  unrelentingly  harassed  as 
was  Louis  Philippe  from  the  time  he  ascended 
the  throne  until  he  was  driven  from  it.  He 
was  irreproachable  in  morals,  a  man  who  had 
seen  much  of  the  world  in  all  its  phases,  saga- 
cious and  well  meaning.  But  he  was  placed 
in  a  position  in  which  no  earthly  wisdom  could 
rescue  him  from  the  direst  trouble.  There 


1848.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.         359 


Liberals  and  Legitimists. 


were  two  antagonistic  and  very  powerful  par- 
ties watching  him. 

The  one  was  the  Liberal  party  in  France,  of 
varied  shades  of  opinion,  demanding  equal 
rights  for  all  men,  hating  the  old  dynastic  des- 
potisms of  Eurbpe,  who  had  forced  the  Bour- 
bons upon  them,  and  hating  those  treaties  of 
Vienna,  of  1815,  which  had  shorn  France  of  a 
large  portion  of  her  territory,  and  had  bound 
Europe  hand  and  foot,  so  as  to  prevent  any  fu- 
ture uprising  of  the  friends  of  popular  liberty. 

The  other  party  consisted  of  the  old  aristoc- 
racy of  France,  the  Legitimists,  supported  by 
the  sympathies  of  all  the  courts  of  Europe,  who 
were  supposed  to  be  not  only  willing  but  eager 
to  unite  their  armies  to  maintain  the  principles 
of  the  old  regime  in  France,  and  thus  to  pre- 
vent the  establishment  there  of  those  princi- 
ples of  popular  liberty  which  would  endanger 
all  their  thrones. 

The  difference  between  these  two  parties 
was  irreconcilable.  As  Louis  Philippe  was 
situated,  he  was  compelled  to  choose  between 
the  two.  He  chose  the  latter.  This  involved 
him  in  unrelenting  and  unintermitted  war 
with  the  former.  Alison  says :  "  Concession  to 
the  Republican  party  and  a  general  change  in 


LOUIS    PllILH'J'K.  [1848. 

Letter  from  the  Prince  de  Joinville. 

external  policy,  so  earnestly  pressed  upon  him 
by  the  Liberals,  would  lead  at  once  to  a  gen- 
eral war;"  that  is,  the  surrounding  dynasties 
would  not  permit  free  institutions  to  be  estab- 
lished in  France. 

Louis  Philippe  was  a  man  of  great  decision 
of  character,  as  his  friends  would  say.  His 
enemies  called  that  trait  stubbornness.  In  a 
letter  purporting  to  have  been  written  on  the 
9th  of  November,  18-47,  by  his  son,  the  Prince 
de  Joinville,  to  the  Duke  de  Nemours,  the 
writer  says  to  his  brother: 

"I  write  one  word  tr  you,  for  I  am  disquiet- 
ed at  the  events  which  I  see  on  all  sides  thick- 
ening around  us.  Indeed,  I  begin  to  be  seri- 
ously alarmed.  The  king  is  inflexible.  He 
will  listen  to  no  advice.  His  own  will  must 
prevail  over  every  thing.  There  are  no  long- 
er any  ministers.  Their  responsibility  is  null. 
Every  thing  rests  with  the  king.  He  has  ar- 
rived at  an  age  when  observations  are  no 
longer  listened  to.  He  is  accustomed  to  gov- 
ern, and  he  loves  to  show  that  he  does  so." 

The  king  is  reported  to  have  said,  at  the 
close  of  a  cabinet  meeting,  in  reply  to  some 
who  urged  concessions  to  the  Liberal  party, 
"Every  one  appears  to  be  for  reform.  Some 


18-18.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.         361 


The  banquets. 


demand  it,  others  promise  it.  For  my  part,  I 
will  never  be  a  party  to  such  weakness.  Re- 
form is  another  word  for  war.  When  the  op- 
position succeed  to  power,  I  shall  take  my  de- 
parture." 

This  was  the  declaration  of  the  king  that 
the  surrounding  dynasties  would  not  permit 
popular  rights  in  France.  An  ancient  law  of 
the  old  regime  did  not  allow  the  people  to  as- 
semble to  discuss  affairs  of  state.  Louis  Phi- 
lippe revived  the  law,  and  enforced  it  vigor- 
ously. To  evade  this  prohibition,  large  din- 
ner-parties, or  banquets,  as  they  were  called, 
were  introduced,  which  afforded  an  opportuni- 
ty of  offering  toasts  and  making  speeches,  in 
which  the  measures  of  Government  were  ve- 
hemently assailed.  These  banquets  sprang  up 
in  all  parts  of  the  kingdom,  and  were  attended 
by  thousands.  Arrangements  were  made  for 
a  mammoth  banquet  in  the  city  of  Paris  on 
the  22d  of  February,  1848.  The  place  select- 
ed was  a  large  open  space  near  the  Champs 
Elyse'es.  It  would  accommodate  six  thousand 
persons  at  the  tables,  and  was  to  be  covered 
with  a  canvas  awning. 

The  Government  resolved  to  disperse  the 
assembly  by  force.  The  leaders  of  the  Oppo- 


362  Louis  PHILIPPE  [1848. 


Agitation  ID  Paris. 


sition,  aware  that  they  were  not  prepared  for 
a  resort  to  arms,  entered  into  a  compromise 
with  the  Government.  The  guests  were  to 
meet  at  the  appointed  time  and  plaee  for  the 
banquet.  The  officers  of  the  police  were  then 
to  appear,  order  the  assembly  to  disperse,  and 
arrest  the  leaders,  who  were  to  be  indicted  for 
a  breach  of  the  law  prohibiting  political  gath- 
erings. Thus  the  question  of  the  right  thus 
to  assemble  was  to  be  referred  to  the  legal 
tribunals.  This  compromise  was  gladly  ac- 
ceded to  by  the  Liberals,  as  many  of  them  de- 
sired a  change  of  ministry  only,  being  very  re- 
luctant to  run  the  hazard  of  a  change  of  dy- 
nasty. 

The  Liberals  accordingly  announced  to  Par- 
is, by  a  proclamation,  that  the  banquet  was 
interdicted  by  the  Government,  but  that  there 
would  be  a  general  demonstration  by  forming 
a  procession  on  the  largest  possible  scale,  to 
march  to  the  appointed  place  of  meeting,  and 
there  peaceably  to  disperse  at  the  orders  of 
the  police. 

Th«3  Government  was  exceedingly  alarmed 
when  it  learned  that  the  banquet  was  convert- 
ed into  a  procession.  This  was  magnifying 
the  danger.  The  excitement  in  Paris  was  in- 


1848.]     THE   FINAL   STKUGGLE.         363 

The  procession  prohibited. 

tense.  It  soon  became  manifest  that  not  less 
than  one  hundred  thousand  men  would  join 
in  the  procession.  A  decree  was  accordingly 
issued  by  the  prefect  of  police,  stating  that  all 
who  chose  to  go  to  the  banquet  individually 
could  do  so,  but  that  any  attempt  to  form  a 
procession  would  meet  with  forcible  resistance. 
This  rendered  it  necessary  for  the  Liberals  ei- 
ther to  give  up  the  plan  of  the  procession,  or 
to  run  the  risk  of  a  collision  with  the  royal 
troops,  for  which  they  were  by  no  means  pre- 
pared. 

The  leaders  of  the  Liberal  party  held  a 
meeting,  when  the  question  was  anxiously  dis- 
cussed. Opinions  on  the  subject  were  divided. 
One  of  the  most  prominent  men  of  the  party, 
M.  Lagrange,  urged  decided  measures.  "Let 
the  democracy,"  said  he,  "hoist  its  standard, 
and  descend  boldly  into  the  field  of  battle  for 
progress.  Humanity,  in  a  mass,  has  its  eyes 
upon  you.  Our  standard  will  rally  around 
ns  the  whole  warlike  and  fraternal  cohorts. 
What  more  are  we  waiting  for?" 

On  the  other  hand,  Louis  Blanc  said,  "  Hu- 
manity restrains  me.  I  ask  if  you  are  entitled 
to  dispose  of  the  blood  of  a  generous  people, 
without  any  prospect  of  advantage  to  the 


36-i  Louis   PiiiLiPi'K.  [1848. 


The  procession  abandoned. 


cause  of  democracy.  If  the  patriots  commence 
the  conflict  to-morrow  they  will  infallibly  be 
crushed,  and  the  democracy  will  be  drowned 
in  blood.  That  will  be  the  result  of  to-mor- 
row's struggle.  Do  not  deceive  yourselves. 
Determine  on  insurrection,  if  you  please;  but 
for  my  part,  if  you  adopt  such  a  decision,  I 
will  retire  to  my  borne,  to  cover  myself  with 
crape  and  mourn  over  the  ruin  of  democracy." 

Ledru  Rollin,  following  in  the  same  strain, 
said,  "Have  we  arms,  ammunition,  combatants 
ready?  The  Government  is  thoroughly  pre- 
pared. The  army  only  awaits  the  signal  to 
crush  us.  My  opinion  is,  that  to  run  into  a 
conflict  in  such  circumstances  is  an  act  of 
madness." 

Under  the  influence  of  such  views,  it  was 
decided  to  abandon  the  procession.  The  reg- 
ular troops  in  Paris  at  that  time  numbered 
twenty  five  thousand.  There  were  as  many 
more  garrisoned  in  neighboring  towns,  who 
could  in  a  few  hours  be  concentrated  in  the 
city.  Orders  had  been  already  issued  for  all 
the  military  posts  of  the  capital  to  be  strong- 
ly occupied.  In  consequence  of  these  various 
measures,  excitement  pervaded  the  whole  me- 
tropolis. Many  of  the  Liberal  party  were 


1848.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.         865 

Concentration  of  the  royal  troops. 

not  satisfied  with  the  decision  of  their  leaders. 
Many  of  the  populace  were  also  ignorant  of 
the  resolutions  to  which  the  committees  had 
come  at  a  late  hour  of  the  evening  of  the  day 
before  the  procession  was  to  have  been  formed. 

At  an  early  hour  in  the  morning  of  the  22d, 
immense  crowds  had  assembled  in  the  Place 
de  la  Madeleine,  the  Place  de  la  Concorde,  and 
the  Champs  Elyse'es.  Here  they  swayed  to 
and  fro,  hour  after  "hour,  motiveless,  awaiting 
the  progress  of  events.  M.  Guizot  was  then 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  and  M.  Duchatel 
Minister  of  the  Interior.  In  the  afternoon  a 
largo  band  of  students  swept  through  the 
streets  singing  the  Marseillaise,  and  shouting 
"Long  live  Reform!"  "Down  with  Guizot!" 
Agitation  was  rapidly  on  the  increase.  Quite 
a  large  body  of  regular  troops  was  stationed  at 
the  junction  of  the  Rue  Rivoli  and  the  Rue  St. 
Honord  Towards  evening  the  excited  mob 
pelted  the  troops  with  stones,  and  commenced 
erecting  barricades  in  the  vicinity.  There 
was,  however,  no  other  serious  disturbance 
during  the  day. 

The  Government,  alarmed  by  these  demon- 
strations, resolved  to  call  out  all  its  military 
force  the  next  morning,  both  the  regular  troops 


;;tit;  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


Defection  of  the  National  Guard. 


and  National  Guard,  to  maintain  order.  Con- 
sequently, at  an  early  hour  in  the  morning  of 
the  23d,  the  generate  was  beat  in  all  the  streets, 
and  the  National  Guard,  more  than  forty  thou- 
oand  strong,  hurried  to  their  appointed  places 
of  rendezvous.  This  crowding  of  the  streets 
with  troops  greatly  increased  the  general  ex- 
citement. All  business  was  suspended.  Many 
of  the  shops  were  closed.  The  whole  popula- 
tion of  Paris  seemed  to  be  upon  the  pavement. 
The  National  Guard,  composed  of  the  mid- 
dling class  in  the  city  of  Paris,  were  most  of 
them  in  favor  of  reform.  Many  of  their  offi- 
cers belonged  to  the  Liberal  party.  Their 
commander-in-chief,  General  Jacquemont,  was 
ready  to  sustain  the  Government.  He  was 
powerless  without  the  co-operation  of  his  offi- 
cers and  men.  In  anticipation  of  the  conflict 
which  now  seemed  so  menacing,  large  numbers 
of  the  officers  held  a  secret  meeting  the  night 
before,  in  which  they  decided  to  stand  between 
the  regular  troops  and  the  irresponsible  popu- 
lace. They  would,  on  the  one  hand,  assist  the 
people  in  demanding  reform,  and  would  pro- 
tect them  from  the  assaults  of  ths  regular 
troops.  On  the  other  hand,  they  would  defend 
the  monarchy,  and  aid  the  troops  in  repelling 


1848.J     THE   J/INAL   STRUGGLE. 


Consternation  at  the  Tuileries. 


insurrection  and  revolution.  As  the  National 
Guard  occupied  every  post  conjointly  with  the 
regular  troops,  they  would  not  allow  the  troops 
tp  disperse  the  assemblages  of  the  people.  It 
would  have  been  destruction  to  the  regular 
troops  to  engage  in  a  conflict  with  the  National 
Guard,  supported  as  it  would  have  been  by  the 
whole  populace  of  Paris. 

In  this  singular  posture  of  affairs,  the  guard 
standing  between  the  regulars  and  the  people, 
and  not  unfrequently  joining  with  the  people 
in  shouts  of  Vive  la  Reforme,  the  hours  wore 
on.  Many  of  the  Liberal  leaders  were  so  en- 
couraged by  this  state  of  things  that  they  dis- 
patched orders  to  the  secret  societies  in  the 
faubourgs  immediately  to  come  forth  in  all 
their  banded  strength,  hoping  to  overawe  the 
Government.  These  formidable  bodies  soon 
appeared,  traversing  the  thoroughfares  in  ap- 
palling numbers.  The  cavalry  received  orders 
to  clear  the  streets.  The  guard  formed  into 
line  in  front  of  one  of  these  bands,  and  with 
fixed  bayonets  held  the  cavalry  back.  The 
populace,  inspired  with  new  zeal,  seized  arms 
wherever  they  could  be  found  and  commenced 
throwing  up  barricades. 

The  king  was  struck  with  consternation  as 


368  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [184& 


A  cabinet  council  summoned. 


these  tidings  were  brought  to  him  at  the  Tuile- 
ries.  A  cabinet  council  was  hastily  convened. 
In  view  of  the  peril  of  the  hour  the  king  sent 
for  the  queen  and  his  son,  the  Duke  de  Mont- 
pensier,  to  be  present  at  the  meeting  of  the 
ministers.  Lamartine  has  given  an  account  of 
the  interview.  The  queen  and  the  Duke  de 
Montpensier  both  urged  the  king  to  dismiss 
his  obnoxious  ministers,  and  replace  them  by  a 
Liberal  ministry  who  should  introduce  parlia- 
mentary reform.  The  king  was  in  entire  sym- 
pathy with  his  ministers.  They  were  carrying 
out  his  own  policy.  With  tears  in  his  eyes  he 
declared  that  he  had  rather  abdicate  the  throne 
than  be  separated  from  them. 

"  You  can  not  do  that,  my  dear,"  said  the 
queen;  "you  belong  to  France,  and  not  to 
yourself.  You  can  not  abdicate." 

"  True,"  replied  the  king,  mournfully,  "I  am 
more  to  be  pitied  than  they.  I  can  not  re- 
sign." 

M.  Guizot,  who  was  absent  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  meeting,  had  come  in  during 
the  interview.  The  king  turned  to  him  and 
said,  "  My  dear  M.  Guizot,  is  it  your  opinion 
that  the  Cabinet  is  in  a  situation  to  make  html 
against  the  storm,  and  to  triumph  over  it?" 


1848.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.        369 


Resignation  of  the  ministry. 


The  minister  replied,  "  Sire,  when  the  king 
proposes  such  a  question  he  himself  answers  it 
The  Cabinet  may  be  in  a  condition  to  gain  the 
victory  in  the  streets,  but  it  can  not  conquer, 
at  the  same  time,  the  royal  family  and  the 
crown.  To  throw  a  doubt  upon  its  support  in 
the  Tuileries  is  to  destroy  it  in  the  exercise  of 
power.  The  Cabinet  has  no  alternative  but  to 
resign." 

The  king  was  deeply  moved  as  he  felt  thus 
compelled  to  accept  their  resignation.  Tears 
dimmed  his  eyes.  Affectionately  embracing 
them,  he  bade  them  adieu,  saying,  "How  hap- 
py you  are  !  You  depart  with  honor,  I  remain 
with  shame." 

Guizot  himself  announced  his  resignation  to 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  then  in  session.  The 
announcement  was  received  with  shouts  of  ap- 
plause from  the  Opposition  benches.  The 
tidings  spread  with  electric  speed  through  the 
streets.  Night  came,  and  large  portions  of  the 
city  blazed  with  illuminations,  exultant  bands 
surged  through  the  streets,  songs  resounded, 
and  the  city  presented  an  aspect  of  universal 
rejoicing.  Still,  with  thinking  men,  there  was 
great  anxiety.  Where  would  all  this  lead  to? 
Would  the  triumphant  populace  be  satisfied 

4—24 


370  Louis   PHILIPPE.  [184&, 

Organization  of  the  revolution!;-)*. 

merely  with  a  change  of  ministry?  Might  it 
not  demand  the  overthrow  of  a  dynasty?  If 
so,  what  government  would  succeed?  There 
were  Legitimists,  and  Orleanists,  and  Imperial- 
ists, and  moderate  Republicans,  and  Socialists 
of  every  grade  of  ultra  Democracy.  Was 
France  to  be  plunged  into  anarchy  by  the  con- 
flict of  these  rival  parties?  While  the  unre- 
flecting populace  drank,  and  sang,  and  danced, 
and  hugged  each  other  in  exultant  joy,  thought- 
ful men  paused,  pondered,  and  turned  pale  with 
apprehension. 

The  ardent  revolutionists  began  now  to  or- 
ganize in  bands  in  different  parts  of  the  city. 
Three  large  bodies  were  speedily  gathered ; 
one  in  front  of  the  office  of  the  Reform,  an 
other  before  that  of  the  Nationals,  and  a  third 
in  the  Place  de  la  Bastile.  These  three  col- 
ums,  led  by  such  men,  born  to  command,  as 
ever  emeige  from  the  populace  in  scenes  of  ex- 
citement, paraded  the  illuminated  streets,  with 
songs  and  shouts  and  flaming  torches,  until 
they  formed  a  junction  in  the  Boulevard  des 
Italiens.  It  was  manifest  that  some  secret  but 
superior  intelligence  guided  their  movements. 
The  Hotel  of  Foreign  Affairs,  then  the  resi- 
dence of  M.  Guizot,  was  in  the  Rue  de  Choi- 


1848.]     THE  .FINAL  STRUGGLE.        371 


Collision  with  the  troops. 


seul.  At  the  head  of  that  street  a  well-armed 
detachment  broke  off  from  one  of  the  proces- 
sions, and,  bearing  with  them  the  blood-red 
flag  of  insurrection,  advanced  to  surround  the 
hotel. 

A  royal  guard  had  been  stationed  here,  con- 
sisting of  a  battalion  of  the  line.  The  troops 
were  drawn  up  across  the  street,  presenting  a 
rampart  of  bayonets  to  prevent  the  farther  ad- 
vance of  the  column.  Here  the  insurgents- 
halted,  face  to  face  with  the  troops,  almost 
near  enough  to  cioss  bayonets.  The  leader 
of  this  column  is  thus  graphically  pictured  by 
Lamartine : 

"A  man  about  forty  years  of  age,  tall,  thin, 
with  hair  curled  and  falling  on  his  shoulders, 
dressed  in  a  white  frock,  well  worn  and  stained 
with  dirt,  marched,  with  a  military  step,  at 
their  head.  His  arms  were  folded  over  his- 
chest,  his  head  slightly  bent  forward  with  the 
air  of  one  who  was  about  to  face  bullets  delib- 
erately, and  to  brave  death  with  exultation.  In 
the  eyes  of  this  man,  well  known  by  the  multi- 
tude, was  concentrated  all  the  fire  of  the  Revo- 
lution. The  physiognomy  was  the  living  ex- 
pression of  the  defiance  of  opposing  force.  His 
lips,  incessantly  agitated,  as  if  by  a  mental  ha- 


372  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1848. 


The  conflict  commenced. 


rangue,  were  pale  and  trembling.  We  are  told 
that  his  name  was  Lagrange." 

The  commander  of  the  royal  troops  sat  on 
horseback  in  front  of  his  line.  The  gleam  of 
the  torches  and  the  waving  of  the  insurgent 
banner  frightened  his  horse.  The  animal 
reared,  and,  recoiling  upon  his  haunches,  broke 
through  the  line  of  troops,  which  in  some  con- 
fusion opened  to  let  him  pass  to  the  rear.  At 
this  moment,  either  by  accident  or  design,  a 
musket-shot  was  discharged  at  the  soldiers  by 
some  one  of  the  insurgents ;  Alison  says  by 
Lagrange  himself.  The  troops,  in  the  gloom 
of  the  night,  agitated  by  the  terrible  excite- 
ments of  the  hour,  and  by  the  confusion  into 
which  their  ranks  were  thrown  by  the  retreat 
of  their  commander  through  them,  deeming 
themselves  attacked,  returned  the  fire,  point- 
blank,  in  full  volley.  By  that  one  discharge 
fifty  of  the  insurgents  were  struck  down  upon 
the  pavements,  killed  or  wounded. 

The  street  thus  swept  by  bullets  was  crowd- 
ed with  men,  women,  and  children.  The  dis- 
charge echoed  far  and  wide  through  Paris,  cre- 
ating terrible  alarm.  Most  who  were  present 
had  not  the  remotest  idea  of  danger,  supposing 
that  they  had  met  only  for  a  demonstration  of 


1848.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.        373 


Flight  of  the  insurgents. 


joy.  Apprehensive  of  another  discharge,  there 
was  an  immediate  and  tumultuous  flight  of  the 
populace,  the  strong  trampling  the  weak  be- 
neath their  feet.  The  insurgents  took  with 
them  their  dead  and  wounded.  This  acci- 
dental slaughter  roused  Paris  to  frenzy.  It 
was  regarded  as  the  revenge  which  the  minis- 
ters had  taken  for  their  overthrow.  Several 
large  wagons  were  procured,  and  the  dead,  ar* 
tistically  arranged  so  as  to  display  to  the  most 
imposing  effect  their  blood  and  wounds,  were 
placed  in  them.  Torches  were  attached  to  the 
wagons,  so  as  to  exhibit  the  bodies  of  the  slain. 
A  woman  was  among  the  victims.  Her  life- 
less body,  half  naked,  occupied  a  very  conspic- 
uous position.  A  man  stood  by  her  side  occa- 
sionally raising  the  corpse  that  it  might  be 
more  distinct!}7  seen. 

Thus,  in  the  gloom  of  a  dark  and  clouded 
night,  this  ghastly  procession  traversed  all  the 
leading  streets  of  Paris,  the  whole  population, 
of  a  city  of  a  million  and  a  half  or  inhabitants, 
being  then  in  the  streets.  The  rage  excited, 
and  the  cries  for  vengeance,  were  deep  and  al- 
most universal.  Louis  Philippe  had  no  per- 
sonal popularity  to  sustain  him.  Legitimists 
and  Kepublicans  alike  ignored  his  claims  to 


37-i  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [184a 


Unpopularity  of  the  king. 


tde  tbrone.  He  was  regarded  as  intensely  av- 
aricious, notwithstanding  his  immense  wealth, 
and  as  ever  ready  to  degrade  France  in  sub- 
serviency to  the  policy  of  foreign  courts,  that 
he  might  gain  the  co-operation  of  these  courts 
in  the  maintenance  of  his  crown,  and  secure 
exalted  matrimonial  alliances  for  his  children. 
There  have  probably  been  few,  if  any,  kings 
upon  the  throne  of  France,  who  have  had 
fewer  friends  or  more  bitter  enemies  than 
Louis  Philippe.  The  following  statement 
from  the  North  American  Review  correctly  ex- 
presses the  sentiment  of  most  thoughtful  men 
upon  the  character  of  his  administration  : 

"During  a  reign  in  which  his  real  authority 
and  influence  were  immense,  he  did  little  for 
his  country,  little  for  the  moral  and  intellect- 
ual elevation  of  his  people,  and  nothing  for  the 
gradual  improvement  of  the  political  institu- 
tions of  his  kingdom  ;  because  his  time  and 
attention  were  absorbed  in  seeking  splendid 
foreign  alliances  for  his  children,  and  in  ma- 
noeuvring to  maintain  a  supple  majority  in  the 
Chambers,  and  to  keep  those  ministers  at  the 
head  of  affairs  who  would  second  more  heart- 
ily his  private  designs." 

While   these    scenes  were    transpiring,  the 


1848.]     THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.        375 


The  Duchess  of  Orleans, 


king,  though  greatly  chagrined  at  the  com- 
pulsory dismissal  of  his  ministers,  yet  supposed 
that  he  had  thus  appeased  the  populace,  and 
that  there  was  no  longer  danger  of  lawless  vio- 
lence. Helen,  duchess  of  Orleans,  widow  of 
the  king's  eldest  son,  a  woman  of  much  intelli- 
gence, had  been  greatly  alarmed  in  apprehen- 
sion that  the  dynasty  was  about  to  be  over- 
thrown. Her  little  son,  the  Count  de  Paris, 
was  heir  to  the  crown.  Relieved  of  her  ap- 
prehensions by  the  dismissal  of  the  obnoxious 
ministers,  and  not  aware  of  what  was  transpir- 
ing in  the  streets,  she  pressed  her  child  to  her 
bosom,  saying:  "Poor  child  !  your  crown  has 
been  indeed  compromised,  but  now  Heaven 
has  restored  it  to  you." 

M.  Guizot,  at  the  time  the  untoward  event 
occurred  in  front  of  his  hotel,  chanced  to  be  at 
the  residence  of  M.  Duchatel,  the  ex-Minister 
of  the  Interior.  As  they  were  conversing,  the 
brother  of  M.  Duchatel  entered,  breathless  and 
in  the  highest  state  of  agitation,  to  communi- 
cate the  tidings  that  the  troops  had  fired  upon 
the  people,  that  the  whole  populace  of  Paris 
was  in  a  ferment  of  indignation,  and  that  there 
was  imminent  danger  that  the  streets  of  the 
metropolis  were  about  to  be  the  theatre  of  the 


376  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


Midnight  tumult. 


most  fearful  carriage.  Should  either  of  these 
ministers  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  exasper- 
ated populace,  their  instant  death  was  certain. 
They  both  hastened  to  the  Tuileries.  It  was 
midnight.  The  terrible  news  had  already 
reached  the  ears  of  the  king.  They  found  him 
in  his  cabinet  with  his  son,  the  Duke  de  Mont- 
pensier,  and  other  important  personages.  All 
were  in  a  state  of  great  consternation.  M. 
Thiers  was  immediately  sent  for.  The  crisis 
demanded  the  most  decisive  measures,  and  yet 
the  councils  were  divided.  There  was  a  very 
energetic  veteran  general  in  Paris,  Marshal 
Bugeaud,  who  had  acquired  renown  in  the 
war  in  Algeria.  He  was  popular  with  the 
soldiers,  but  very  unpopular  with  the  people. 
Inured  to -the  horrors  of  the  battle-field,  he 
would,  without  the  slightest  hesitation,  mow 
down  the  people  mercilessly  with  grape-shot. 

The  king  was  appalled,  in  view  of  his  own 
peril  and  that  of  his  family.  He  well  knew 
how  numerous  and  bitter  were  his  enemies. 
He  had  not  forgotten  the  doom  of  his  predeces- 
sors in  that  palace,  Louis  XVI.  and  Maria  An- 
toinette. For  years  assassins  had  dogged  his 
path.  All  varieties  of  ingenious  machines  of 
destruction  had  been  constructed  to  secure  his 


1848.]     THE  *'INAL  STRUGGLE.        377 

Consternation  of  the  royal  family. 

death.  He  was  appropriately  called  the  Tar- 
get King,  so  constantly  were  the  bullets  of  his 
foes  aimed  at  his  life.  Even  a  brave  man  may 
be  excused  for  being  terrified  when  his  wife 
and  his  children  are  exposed  to  every  conceiv- 
able indignity  and  to  a  bloody  death.  Un- 
der these  circumstances  the  king  consented  to 
place  the  command  of  the  army  in  the  hands 
of  the  energetic  Marshal  Bugeaud.  It  was 
now  two  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  veteran 
marshal,  invested  with  almost  dictatorial  pow- 
ers, left  the  Tuileries  in  company  with  one  of 
the  sons  of  the  king,  the  Duke  de  Nemours,  to 
take  possession  of  the  troops,  and  to  arrange 
them  for  the  conflict  which  was  inevitable  on 
the  morrow. 

The  impulse  of  a  master-mind  was  imme- 
diately felt.  Aided  by  the  obscurity  of  the 
night,  messengers  were  dispatched  in  every  di- 
rection, and  by  five  o'clock  in  the  morning 
four  immense  columns  of  troops  were  advanc- 
ing to  occupy  important  strategic  points,  which 
would  command  the  city.  These  arrange- 
ments being  completed,  the  Duke  de  Nemours 
anxiously  inquired  of  the  marshal  what  he 
thought  of  the  morrow.  M.  Bugeaud  replied : 

"  Monseigneur,  it  will  be  rough,  but  the  vie- 


378  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


Marshal  Bugeaod. 


tory  will  be  ours.  I  have  never  yet  been  beat- 
en, and  I  am  not  going  to  commence  to-mor- 
row. Certainly  it  would  have  been  better  not 
to  have  lost  so  much  time ;  but  no  matter,  I 
will  answer  for  the  result  if  I  arn  left  alone. 
It  must  not  be  imagined  that  I  can  manage 
without  bloodshed.  Perhaps  there  will  be 
much,  for  I  begin  with  cannon.  But  do  not 
be  uneasy.  To-morrow  evening  the  authority 
of  the  king  and  of  the  law  shall  be  re-estab- 
lished." 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.   379 


Attempts  at  conciliation. 


CHAPTER  XII. 
THE  THRONE   DEMOLISHED. 

IN  the  mean  time  the  king  formed  a  new 
and  liberal  ministry,  consisting  of  MM. 
Thiers,  Odillon  Barrot,  and  Duvergier  de  Hau- 
ranne,  hoping  thus  to  conciliate  the  populace. 
The  fact  was  placarded,  at  six  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  all  over  Paris.  But  the  act  of  ap- 
pointing Marshal  Bugeaud  to  command  the 
troops  was  a  declaration  of  war — the  formation 
of  this  ministry  was  a  supplication  for  peace. 
The  one  act  was  defiance,  the  other  capitula- 
tion. Thus,  while  General  Bugeaud  was  load- 
ing his  cannon  to  the  muzzle,  and  marshalling 
his  troops  for  battle,  he  received  an  order,  to 
his  inexpressible  chagrin,  from  the  new  minis- 
try directing  him  to  cease  the  combat  and  to 
withdraw  the  troops,  while  at  the  same  time  an 
announcement  was  made,  by  a  proclamation  to 
the  people,  that  the  new  ministry  had  ordered 
the  troops  everywhere  to  cease  firing,  and  to 
withdraw  from  the  menacing  positions  which 


380  Louis    PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


Falne  confidence  of  the  king. 


they  occupied.  The  indignant  marshal  for  a 
time  refused  to  obey  the  order  until  it  should 
be  ratified  by  the  sign -manual  of  the  king. 
He  soon,  however,  received  a  dispatch  from  the 
Dnke  de  Nemours  which  rendered  it  necessary 
to  submit.  Thus  the  new  ministry  rejected  the 
policy  of  resistance,  and  inaugurated  that  of 
conciliation. 

The  king,  worn  out  by  excitement  and  fa- 
tigue, at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning  retired 
to  his  chamber  for  a  few  hours  of  sleep.  He 
was  so  far  deceived  as  to  flatter  himself  that, 
through  the  measures  which  had  been  adopted, 
all  serious  trouble  was  at  an  end.  He  slept 
soundly,  and  did  not  rise  until  eleven  o'clock, 
when  he  came  down  to  the  breakfast-roorn  in 
morning-gown  and  slippers,  and  with  a  smiling 
countenance.  Here  appalling  tidings  met  him. 
The  exasperated  populace  were  tearing  down 
and  trampling  under  foot  the  conciliatory  proc- 
lamation of  M.  Thiers.  The  national  troops, 
disgusted  with  the  contradictory  orders  which 
had  been  issued,  were  loud  in  their  clamor 
against  the  king.  The  National  Guard  was 
everywhere  fraternizing  with  the  people.  The 
frenzy  of  insurrection  was  surging  through  all 
the  thoroughfares  of  Paris. 


1848.]  THE  THBONE  DEMOLISHED.   381 

Resignation  of  Thiers. 

The  king  was  silent  in  consternation.  Im- 
mediately repairing  to  his  chamber,  he  dressed 
himself  in  the  uniform  of  the  National  Guard, 
and  returned  to  his  cabinet,  where  he  was 
joined  by  two  of  his  sons,  the  Duke  de  Nemours 
and  the  Duke  de  Montpensier.  All  night  long 
the  dismal  clang  of  the  tocsin  had  summoned  the 
fighting  portion  of  the  population  to  impor- 
tant points  of  defense.  Nearly  all  the  churches 
were  in  the  hands  of  the  insurgents.  Under 
cover  of  the  darkness,  barricades  had  been 
rising  in  many  of  the  streets.  The  national 
troops  had  retired,  humiliated,  to  the  vicinity 
of  the  Tuileries  and  Palais  Eoyal.  Many  of 
the  soldiers,  in  their  disgust,  had  thrown  away 
their  muskets,  while  some  of  the  officers,  under 
similar  feelings,  had  broken  their  swords  and 
cast  them  away  upon  the  pavement. 

Affairs  made  such  rapid  progress  that  by  ten 
o'clock  M.  Thiers  became  fully  convinced  that 
he  had  no  longer  influence  with  the  people.  He 
accordingly  resigned  the  ministry,  and  M.  Odil- 
Ion  Barrot,  a  man  far  more  democratic  in  his 
principles,  was  appointed  prime-minister  in  his 
stead.  The  Palais  Royal,  the  magnificent  an- 
cestral abode  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  being  left 
unguarded,  the  mob  burst  in,  rioted  through 


•3*2  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [184& 


Scene  in  the  palace. 


all  its  princely  saloons,  plundering  and  destroy- 
ing. Its  paintings,  statuary,  gorgeous  furniture, 
and  priceless  works  of  art  were  pierced  with 
bayonets,  slashed  with  sabre-strokes,  thrown 
into  the  streets,  and  consumed  with  flames. 
In  less  than  half  an  hour  the  magnificent  apart- 
ments of  this  renowned  palace  presented  but  a 
revolting  spectacle  of  destruction  and  ruin. 

The  king,  the  queen,  the  Duchess  of  Orleans, 
and  the  Duke  deMontpensier,  with  several  dis- 
tinguished friends,  were  still  in  the  breakfast- 
room — the  Gallery  of  Diana,  in  the  Tuileries. 
The  mob,  their  hands  filled  with  the  plunder 
of  the  Palais  Royal,  were  already  entering  the 
Carrousel.  Loud  shouts  announced  their  tri- 
umph to  the  trembling  inmates  of  the  royal 
palace,  and  appalled  them  with  fears  of  the 
doom  which  they  soon  might  be  called  to  en- 
counter. Two  of  the  gentlemen,  M.  Rernusat 
and  M.  de  Hauranne,  stepped  out  into  the  court- 
yard of  the  Tuileries  to  ascertain  the  posture 
of  affairs.  Speedily  they  returned,  pale,  and 
with  features  expressive  of  intense  anxiety. 

"  Sire,"  said  M.  Remusat  to  the  king,  "  it  is 
necessary  that  your  majesty  should  know  the 
truth  1  To  conceal  it  at  this  moment  would  be 
to  render  ourselves  implicated  in  all  that  may 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  383 


Heroism  of  the  queen. 


follow.  Your  feelings  of  security  prove  that 
you  are  deceived!  Three  hundred  feet  from 
here  the  dragoons  are  exchanging  their  sabres, 
and  the  soldiers  their  muskets  with  the  people!" 

"It  is  impossible!"  exclaimed  the  king,  re- 
coiling with  astonishment. 

"  Sire,"  added  an  officer,  M.  de  I'Aubosp&re, 
who  was  present,  "  it  is  true.  I  have  seen  it." 

The  queen,  re-enacting  the  heroism  of  Marie 
Antoinette  on  a  similar  occasion,  said  to  her 
faint-hearted  husband,  "Go,  show  yourself  to 
the  discouraged  troops,  to  the  wavering  Na- 
tional Guard.  I  will  come  out  on  the  balcony 
with  my  grandchildren  and  the  princesses,  and 
I  will  see  you  die  worthy  of  yourself,  of  your 
throne,  and  of  your  misfortunes." 

The  king  descended  the  stairs,  while  the 
queen  and  the  princesses  went  upon  the  bal- 
cony. He  passed  through  the  court-yard  of 
the  Tuileries  into  the  Carrousel.  If  any  shouts 
were  uttered  of  "  Vive  le  Jtoi"  they  were  drown- 
ed in  the  cry  which  seemed  to  burst  from  all 
lips,  "  Vive  la  Reforme!  d  bas  les  Minislresl" 

All  hope  was  now  gone !  The  king,  in  de- 
spair, returned  to  the  royal  family.  The  panic 
was  heart-rending — the  ladies  weeping  aloud. 
The  shouts  which  filled  the  air  announced  that 


384:  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [184d 


The  insurrection  triumphant. 


the  mob  was  approaching,  triumphant,  from  all 
directions,  while  a  rattling  fire  of  musketry 
was  heard,  ever  drawing  nearer.  Marshal  Bu- 
geaud  did  what  he  could  to  arrest  the  advance 
of  the  insurgents,  but  his  troops  were  sullen, 
and  but  feebly  responded  to  any  of  his  orders. 

In  the  midst  of  this  terrible  scene,  the  king 
took  his  pen  to  appoint  another  ministry,  still 
more  radically  democratic  than  Barrot  and 
Ilauranne.  As  he  was  writing  out  the  list,  M. 
de  Girardin  entered  the  apartment  He  was 
editor  of  the  Times  newspaper,  and  one  of  the 
most  uncompromising  Republicans  in  the  city. 
Approaching  the  king,  he  said  to  him  firmly, 
yet  respectfully, 

"  Sire,  it  is  now  too  late  to  attempt  to  form 
a  new  ministry.  The  public  mind  can  not  be 
tranquilized  by  such  a  measure.  The  flood  of 
insurrection,  now  resistless,  threatens  to  sweep 
away  the  throne  itself.  Nothing  short  of  abdi- 
cation will  now  suffice." 

Upon  the  utterance  of  that  fatal  word,  the 
king  inquired  anxiously,  "  Is  there  no  other 
alternative  ?" 

M.  Girardin  replied,  "  Sire,  within  an  hour, 
perhaps,  there  will  be  no  such  thing  as  a  mon- 
archy in  France.  The  crisis  admits  of  no  third 


1848.]  Tnii  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  385 


The  abdication. 


alternative.  The  king  must  abdicate,  or  the 
monarchy  is  lost." 

The  Duke  de  Montpensier,  fully  comprehend- 
ing the  peril  of  the  hour,  earnestly  entreated 
his  father  to  sign  the  abdication.  But,  on  the 
other  hand,  there  were  those  who  entreated  the 
king,  with  equal  fervor,  not  to  sign  it.  M.  Pis- 
catory and  Marshal  Bugeaud  urged  that  abdi- 
cation would  inflict  a  Republic  upon  France, 
with  no  end  to  anarchy  and  civil  war;  that  the 
only  way  to  meet  the  insurrection  was  to  crush 
it  by  military  power. 

The  king  hesitated.  The  clamor  and  the 
rattle  of  musketry  increased  and  drew  nearer. 
Messengers  came  in  breathless,  announcing 
that  all  was  lost.  The  Duke  de  Montpensier, 
trembling  in  view  of  the  irruption  of  the  mob, 
and  of  the  dreadful  consequent  doom  of  the 
royal  family,  with  renewed  earnestness  en- 
treated his  father  to  abdicate.  Thus  influ- 
enced, the  king  took  his  pen  and  wrote: 

"I  abdicate  this  crown,  which  I  received 
from  the  voice  of  the  nation,  and  which  I  ac- 
cepted only  that  I  might  promote  the  peace 
and  harmony  of  the  French. 

"Finding  it  impossible  to  accomplish  this 
endeavor,  I  bequeath  it  to  my  grandson,  the 
4—25 


38ti  Louis    PHILIPPE.  [1848. 

Imminent  danger  of  the  royal  family. 

Count  de  Paris.  May  he  be  more  happy  than 
I  have  been." 

It  is  said  that  the  excitement  and  hurry  of 
the  occasion  were  so  great  that  the  king  neg- 
lected to  sign  the  abdication.  Girardin,  how- 
ever, took  the  paper  and  went  out  into  the 
stormy  streets  to  announce  the  important 
event.  But  Paris  was  now  in  a  state  of  fer- 
ment which  nothing  could  immediately  ap- 
pease. The  rush  and  roar  of  the  storm  of  hu- 
man passion  in  the  streets  seemed  still  to  in- 
crease, and  to  approach  nearer  to  the  doors  of 
the  palace.  Danger  of  violence  and  death  was 
imminent.  Nearly  all  had  withdrawn  from  the 
Tuileries  except  the  royal  family.  Louis  Phi- 
lippe now  thought  only  of  escape.  Surround- 
ed as  the  palace  was  by  the  mob,  this  was  no 
easy  task  to  accomplish.  The  king  disguised 
himself  in  citizen's  dress.  The  queen  was  al- 
most frantic  with  terror. 

The  king,  having  abdicated  in  favor  of  his 
grandson,  the  Count  de  Paris,  was  disposed  to 
leave  the  child-monarch  with  his  mother  in 
the  palace.  He  flattered  himself  that  the  in- 
nocence of  the  child  and  the  helplessness  of 
the  mother  would  prove  their  protection.  But 
when  the  Duchess  of  Orleans  perceived  that  no 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  S8T 

Peril  and  sufferings  of  the  Duchess  of  Orleans. 

arrangements  wer$  being  made  for  her  escape 
and  that  of  her  children,  she  exclaimed  in  an- 
guish, 

"Are  you  going  to  leave  me  here  alone, 
without  parents,  friends,  or  any  to  advise  me? 
What  will  become  of  me?" 

The  king  sadly  replied,  "My  dear  Helen,, 
the  dynasty  must  be  saved,  and  the  crown  pre- 
served to  your  son.  Remain  here,  then,  for 
his  sake.  It  is  a  sacrifice  you  owe  your  son." 

Seldom  has  a  woman  and  a  mother  been, 
called  to  pass  through  a  more  severe  ordeal 
than  this.  The  peril  was  awful.  In  a  few 
moments  a  mob  of  countless  thousands,  com- 
posed of  the  dregs  of  the  populace  of  Paris,  in- 
flamed with  intoxication  and  rage,  might  be 
surging  through  all  the  apartments  of  the- 
Tuileries,  while  the  duchess  and  her  children 
were  entirely  at  their  mercy.  No  ordinary 
heroism  could  be  adequate  to  such  a  trial. 
The  duchess  threw  herself  at  the  feet  of  the 
king,  and  entreated  permission  to  accompany 
him  in  his  flight.  The  king  was  firm,  cruelly 
firm.  Leaving  the  widow  of  his  son,  with  her 
two  children,  all  unprotected,  behind  him,  he 
withdrew,  to  effect  his  own  escape  with  the- 
queen  and  the  princesses,  under  the  guidance- 


388  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1848. 


Flight  of  the  king. 


of  his  son,  the  Duke  de  Nemburs,  who  display- 
ed the  utmost  heroism  during  all  the  scenes  of 
that  eventful  day.  As  the  party  was  in  dis- 
guise, and  the  whole  city  was  in  a  state  of  in- 
describable tumult,  the  fugitives  succeeded  in 
traversing,  without  being  recognized,  the  broad 
central  avenue  of  the  garden  of  the  Tuileries. 
Emerging  by  the  gate  of  the  Pont  Tournant, 
they  reached  the  foot  of  the  obelisk  in  the 
Place  de  la  Concorde.  It  was  one  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon;  the  duke  had  ordered  the  car- 
riages to  be  ready  for  them  there.  But  the 
rnob,  recognizing  the  carriages  as  belonging  to 
the  royal  family,  had  dashed  them  to  pieces. 

The  embarrassment  and  peril  were  terrible. 
There  was  momentary  danger  of  being  recog- 
nized. Then  death  and  being  trampled  be- 
neath the  feet  of  the  mob  were  almost  inevita- 
ble. An  agitated  throng  of  countless  thou- 
sands was  surging  through  the  Place.  Al- 
ready some  began  to  suspect  them  as  belong- 
ing to  the  court,  and  they  were  rudely  jostled. 
But  providentially  there  were  two  hackney- 
coaches  near  by.  These  were  hurriedly  en- 
gaged, the  royal  family  thrust  into  them,  and 
a  guard  of  cuirassiers,  previously  stationed 
near  for  the  occasion  by  the  Duke  de  Ne- 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  389 


Escape. 


mours,  gathered  around  the  carriages  as  &rt  es- 
cort, and  at  a  quick  trot  swept  along  the  banks 
of  the  Seine  by  the  Quai  de  Billi,  and  escaped 
from  Paris.  That  night  they  reached  Dreux, 
one  of  the  country-seats  of  the  king. 

Their  peril  still  was  great.  The  small  es- 
cort at  their  disposal  was  by  no  means  suffi- 
cient to  protect  them,  should  there  be  any  up- 
rising of  the  people  to  arrest  their  progress. 
It  was,  therefore,  deemed  best  to  dismiss  their 
guard,  and  proceed  to  the  sea-coast  in  disguise, 
by  unfrequented  routes,  as  simple  travellers. 
They  were,  however,  in  great  want  of  money. 
The  king,  in  the  confusion  of  his  departure, 
bad  left  seventy  thousand  dollars  in  bank- 
notes upon  his  bureau.  He  had  but  a  small 
supply  in  his  pocket. 

Resuming  their  journey  the  next  morning, 
they  reached  Evreux,  and  were  entertained  for 
the  night  by  a  farmer  in  the  royal  forest,  who 
had  no  idea  of  the  distinguished  character  of 
the  guests  to  whose  wants  he  was  ministering. 
Early  in  the  morning  of  the  third  day  they  set 
out  again  in  a  rude  cart,  called  a  Berlin,  drawn 
by  two  cart-horses.  They  had  many  strange 
adventures  and  narrow  escapes,  even  perform- 
ing a  portion,  of  their  journey  on  foot.  At 


590  Louis  PHILIPPE  [1848. 


Peril  of  the  Duchess  Helen. 


length  they  reached  the  sea-coast  at  Honfleur, 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Seine,  on  the  southern 
bank.  Here  they  embarked,  still  under  the 
assumed  name  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith,  for 
Havre,  from  which  port  they  crossed  over  to 
New  Haven,  on  the  southern  coast  of  England, 
leaving  behind  them  their  crown  and  their 
•country  forever.  They  reached  this  land  of 
refuge  for  dethroned  kings  on  the,  4th  of 
March,  and  took  up  their  abode  at  Claremont, 
formerly  the  residence,  and  perhaps  then  the 
.property  of  their  son-in-law,  Leopold,  king  of 
Belgium. 

And  now  let  us  return  to  the  Princess  Helen, 
who  was  left  with  her  two  children  in  one  of 
the  apartments  of  the  palace.  Immediately 
•upon  the  withdrawal  of  the  king,  the  troops 
jn  the  Carrousel,  who  were  then  retreating  into 
the  court-yard  of  the  Tuileries,  retired  through 
the  palace  into  the  garden.  The  princess,  a 
very  heroic  woman,  had  entirely  recovered 
her  self-possession,  and  awaited  her  doom  with 
the  serenity  of  a  martyr.  As  the  shouting 
mob  rushed  into  the  Carrousel,  and  the  win- 
dows of  the  palace  were  rattling  from  the  ex- 
plosions of  the  artillery,  M.  Dupin,  president 
of  the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  entered  the  room, 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  393 


She  retires  from  the  Tuileries. 


and,  much  agitated  with  both  fear  and  hope, 
said, 

"  Madame,  I  have  come  to  tell  you  that  per- 
haps the  r6k  of  Maria  Theresa  is  reserved  for 
you." 

"Lead  the  way,"  replied  the  heroic  woman ; 
"my  life  belongs  to  France  and  to  my  chil- 
dren." 

"  There  is  not  a  moment  to  lose,"  M.  Dupin 
rejoined.  "Let  us  go  instantly  to  the  Cham- 
ber of  Deputies." 

As  he  was  speaking  these  words,  the  Duke 
de  Nemours  returned.  Peril  was  indeed  im- 
minent. The  mob  was  already  surging  in  at 
the  court  of  the  Tuileries,  and  thundering 
against  the  gates  of  the  palace. 

The  princess  and  her  few  companions  im- 
mediately set  out  on  foot,  to  pass  through  the 
garden  of  the  Tuileries,  the  Place  de  la  Con- 
corde, and  to  cross  the  river,  to  obtain  the  pro- 
tection of  the  Chamber  of  Deputies.  Scarcely 
had  they  emerged  from  the  portals  into  the 
garden  ere  the  roaring  mob  burst  from  the 
court-yard  into  the  palace,  and  surged  through 
the  saloons  with  the  destruction  of  consuming 
flame.  Shouts  seemed  to  burst  from  all  lips, 
"Down  with  the  Throne  I"  "Long  live  the 


394  Louis    P 11 1  LI  ]•]')•:.  [1848. 

The  duchess  in  the  Chamber  of  Deputies. 

Republic!"  Every  vestige  of  royalty  was  torn 
to  shreds.  The  rich  drapery  which  canopied 
the  throne  was  rent  into  scarfs,  or  formed  into 
cockades,  with  which  the  mob  decorated  their 
persons. 

With  hurried  steps  and  anxious  hearts  the 
royal  party  pressed  on  through  the  throng 
which  choked  all  the  avenues  to  the  palace. 
They  seem  to  have  been  partially  recognized, 
for  a  noisy  crowd  followed  their  footsteps. 
The  princess  led  her  eldest  son,  the  Count  de 
Paris,  by  the  hand.  The  youngest,  the  Duke 
Je  Chartres,  was  carried  in  the  arms  of  an  aid- 
de-camp.  M.  Dupin  walked  upon  one  side  of 
the  princess,  and  the  Duke  de  Nemours  upon 
the  other.  Safely  they  crossed  the  bridge  and 
entered  the  hotel  of  the  Deputies.  All  was 
agitation  and  confusion  there.  M.  Dupin  re- 
paired to  the  hall  of  session,  and,  ascending  the 
tribune,  announced  that  the  king  had  abdicated 
in  favor  of  his  grandson.  In  a  brief,  earnest 
speech  he  urged  the  claims  of  the  Count  de 
Paris  as  king,  under  the  regency  of  the  Duch- 
ess of  Orleans,  his  mother.  This  speech  cre- 
ated a  momentary  enthusiasm.  By  acclama- 
tion it  was  voted  that  the  resignation  of  the 
king  should  be  accepted,  and  that  the  Count 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  395 


Speech  of  Lamartine. 


de  Paris  should  be  recognized  as  lawful  sover- 
eign, under  the  regency  of  the  duchess.  Just 
then  Lamartine  came  in. 

Lamartine,  notwithstanding  the  brilliance  of 
his  talents  and  the  purity  of  his  character,  was 
by  no  means  insensible  to  flattery,  or  to  the 
suggestions  of  ambition.  It  is  said  that  a 
group  of  Eepublicans  had  but  a  moment  be- 
fore met  him  at  the  entrance  of  the  building, 
with  the  assurance  that  a  Republic  was  inevi" 
table,  and  that  all  the  Republicans  were  look- 
ing to  him  as  their  leader  and  future  Presi- 
dent. These  assurances  may  not  have  swayed 
his  judgment.  But  many  who  had  supposed 
that  his  strong  predelictions  were  for  royalty 
were  not  a  little  surprised  when  he  ascended 
the  tribune,  and  said, 

"  There  is  but  one  way  to  save  the  people 
from  the  danger  which  a  revolution,  in  our 
present  social  state,  threatens  instantly  to  in- 
troduce, and  that  is  to  trust  ourselves  to  the 
force  of  the  people  themselves  —  to  their  rea- 
son, their  interests,  their  aims.  It  is  a  republic 
which  we  require.  Yes,  it  is  a  Republic  which 
alone  can  save  us  from  anarchy,  civil  war,  for- 
eign war,  spoliation,  the  scaffold,  destruction  of 
property,  the  overthrow  of  society,  the  inva- 


Louis    I'M  i  LI  i'l'K.  [18-Jb8. 


Scene  iu  the  Chamber. 


sion  of  foreigners.     The  remedy  is  heroic.     I 
know   it.      But  there   are   occasions,  such 
those  in  which  we  live,  when  the  only  safe  pol- 
icy is  that  which  is  grand  and  audacious  as 
the  crisis  itself." 

As  Larnartine  left  the  tribune,  M.  Thiers  en- 
tered, flushed  with  excitement.  All  eyes  were 
anxiously  fixed  upon  him.  Taking  his  place 
in  the  tribune,  he  simply  remarked,  "The  tide 
is  rising,"  at  the  same  time,  wiih  dramatic  ges- 
ture, lifting  his  hat  above  his  head.  As  he 
again  disappeared  in  the  crowd,  there  was  a 
general  increase  of  alarm.  It  was  manifest  to 
all  that  affairs  were  now  sweeping  along  in  a 
swollen  current  which  human  sagacity  could 
but  feebly  control.  The  roar  of  the  throng 
surging  around  the  hall  filled  the  air.  The 
strongest  minds  were  appalled. 

Just  then  the  folding-doors  of  the  Chamber 
were  thrown  open,  and  the  Duchess  of  Orleans, 
leading  the  Count  de  -Paris  by  one  hand  and 
the  Duke  de  Chartres  by  the  other,  was  ush- 
ered in.  Lamartfne,  an  eye-witness,  gives  the 
following  account  of  the  scene:  "A  respect- 
ful silence  immediately  ensued.  The  Deputies, 
in.  deep  anxiety,  crowded  around  the  august 
princess,  and  the  strangers  in  the  gallery  lean- 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  397 


Entrance  of  the  duchess. 


ed  over,  hoping  to  catch  some  words  which 
might  fall  from  her  lips.  She  was  dressed  in 
mourning.  Her  veil,  partially  raised,  disclosed 
a  countenance  the  emotion  and  melancholy 
of  which  enhanced  the  charms  of  youth  and 
beauty.  Her  pale  cheeks  were  marked  by  the 
tears  of  the  widow,  the  anxieties  of  the  mother. 
No  man  could  look  on  her  countenance  with- 
out being  moved.  Every  feeling  of  resent- 
ment against  the  monarchy  faded  away  before 
the  spectacle.  The  blue  eyes  of  the  princess 
wandered  over  the  hall  as  if  to  implore  aid, 
and  were,  for  a  moment,  dazzled.  Her  slight 
and  fragile  form  inclined  before  the  sound  of 
the  applause  with  which  she  was  greeted.  A 
slight  blush,  the  mark  of  the  revival  of  hope 
in  her  bosom,  tinged  her  cheeks.  The  smile 
of  gratitude  was  already  on  her  lips.  She  felt 
that  she  was  surrounded  by  friends.  In  her 
right  hand  she  held  the  young  king,  in  her  left 
the  Duke  of  Chartres — children  to  whom  their 
own  catastrophe  was  a  spectacle.  A  white  col- 
iar  was  turned  down  the  neck  of  each,  on  his 
dark  dress — living  portraits  of  Vandyck,  as  if 
they  had  stepped  out  of  the  canvas,  of  the  chil- 
dren of  Charles  I." 

The  duchess  had  but  just  entered  when  the 


398  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


The  rash  of  the  mob. 


doors  were  burst  open  by  the  pressure  of  the 
crowd,  and'  the  mob  rushed  in.  They  were 
coarse,  brutal  men,  armed  with  every  conceiv- 
able weapon,  and  immediately  they  inundated 
the  hall.  Clamorously  they  demanded  the  re- 
jection of  the  throne,  which  had,  thus  far,  ever 
trampled  upon  their  rights,  and  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  republic,  from  which  alone  they 
hoped  for  redress.  A  scene  of  indescribable 
confusion  ensued,  cries  rising  upon  all  sides. 
The  duchess  endeavored  to  speak.  Her  trem- 
ulous  feminine  voice  was  heard  exclaiming,  "  I 
have  come  with  all  I  hold  dear  in  the  world,' 
but  the  remainder  of  her  words  were  drowned 
in  the  universal  clamor. 

The  sympathies  of  Lamartine,  notwithstand- 
ing his  republican  speech,  were  deeply  movea 
by  the  presence  of  the  princess.  Taking  ad- 
vantage of  a  slight  lull  in  the  storm,  when  his 
voice  could  be  heard,  he  said,  "  Mr.  President, 
I  demand  that  the  sitting  should  be  suspended, 
from  the  double  motive,  on  the  one  hand,  of 
respect  for  the  national  representation  ;  on  the 
other,  for  the  august  princess  whom  we  see  be- 
fore  us." 

But  Marshal  Oudinot,  the  Duke  de  Ne- 
mours, and  other  friends  who  surrounded  the 


18-18.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  399 

Escape  of  the  dnchess  and  her  children. 

duchess,  deemed  it  essential  to  the  success  of 
her  cause  that  she  should  not  withdraw  from 
the  Chamber.  The  human  heart  is  often 
swayed  by  influences  stronger  than  argument. 
A  young  and  beautiful  woman,  heroically  fac- 
ing the  most  terrible  dangers  in  advocacy  of 
the  claims  of  her  child  to  the  throne,  appealed 
more  persuasively  to  many  chivalric  hearts 
than  the  most  cogent  logic.  Every  one  in  the 
room  trembled  for  the  life  of  the  princess  and 
her  children.  They  were  surrounded  by  a 
mob  of  scowliflg,  ferocious  men,  who  held  pos- 
session of  the  hall.  The  blow  of  a  club,  the 
thrust  of  a  dagger,  might  at  any  instant  be 
given,  and  there  was  no  possibility  of  protec- 
tion. 

The  friends  who  endeavored  to  surround  the 
princess  and  the  children  with  the  shield  of 
their  bodies  gradually  crowded  them  along  to 
a  higher  portion  of  the  house  near  the  door, 
through  which  they  could  more  easily  effect 
their  escape  in  case  of  necessity.  The  confu- 
sion and  clamor  which  now  filled  the  hall  can 
scarcely  be  imagined.  Scarcely  the  semblance 
of  a  deliberative  assembly  was  maintained. 
The  triumphant  mob  was  holding  there  its 
wildest  orgies.  In  vain  Lamartine,  Ledru  Eol- 


400  Louis  PHILIPPE.          [1848. 


The  Provisional  Government. 


lin,  and  others  endeavored  to  make  themselves 
heard,  calling  for  a  provisional  government. 
The  howling  of  the  mob  drowned  every  voice. 

The  members,  in  confusion,  rose  from  their 
seats.  The  president  fled  from  his  chair 
Some  ferocious  wretches,  upon  whose  counte 
nances  brutality  was  imprinted,  clambered 
over  the  benches  and  leveled  their  m  askets  at 
the  head  of  the  princess.  Her  friends,  terror- 
stricken,  hurried  her  and  her  children  through 
the  door.  The  moment  she  disappeared  there 
was  a  general  cry  for  a  provisional  govern- 
ment, as  the  first  step  towards  the  establish- 
ment of  a  Eepublic.  This  call  was  made,  not 
only  by  the  mob,  but  by  that  large  portion 
of  the  Deputies  who  thought  that  a  Republic 
alone  could  save  France  from  anarchy,  and  re- 
store to  the  people  their  long  withheld  rights. 

Lamartine  succeeded  in  obtaining  the  trib- 
une. For  a  moment  he  was  popular,  the  rep- 
resentative of  Republicanism.  There  was  a 
brief  lull  in  the  tempest  as  the  throng  listened 
to  what  he  had  to  say.  The  following  list  of 
names  of  those  proposed  to  constitute  the  Pro- 
visional Government  was  then  read  off:  La- 
martine, Marie,  Ledru  Rollin,  Cremieux,  Dupont 
de  1'Eure,  Arago,  and  Gamier  Pages.  Some 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  401 

The  moderate  and  the  radical  Republicans. 

of  these  names  were  received  with  cheers,  oth- 
ers with  hisses.  It  was  impossible  to  take  any 
formal  vote.  •  The  voices  of  the  Deputies  were 
lost  in  the  clamor  of  the  mob.  Still,  the  gen- 
eral assent  seemed  to  be  in  their  favor.  These 
were  all  good  men.  They  were  deemed  mod- 
erate Republicans. 

But  there  was  another  portion  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  the  radical,  so  called,  who  would 
by  no  means  be  satisfied  with  such  an  admin- 
istration as  these  calm,  deliberate  men  would 
inaugurate,  with  their  lingering  adhesion  to 
the  rights  of  wealth  and  the  dignity  of  rank. 
There  might  have  been  possibly  a  thousand 
people  crowded  into  the  hall  of  the  Chamber 
of  Deputies,  who  thus,  self-appointed,  were 
forming  a  government  for  a  nation  numbering 
thirty-five  millions. 

The  more  radical  party,  perhaps  equal  in 
number,  and  no  less  tumultuous,  composed  also 
of  those  of  the  stoutest  muscle  and  most  de- 
termined will,  who  could  elbow  their  way 
through  the  throng,  gathered  in  the  great  hall 
of  the  Hotel  de  Yille,  proclaimed  an  antago- 
nistic provisional  government,  more  in  accord' 
ance  with  their  views.  Their  list  consisted  of 
Marrast,  Flocon,  Louis  Blanc,  and  Albert.  The 

4—26 


402  Louis  PHILIPPE  [1848 


A  compromise. 


danger  of  a  conflict,  leading  to  hopeless  an- 
archy, was  imminent,  as  the  partisans  of  each 
should  rally  around  its  own  choice. 

The  first  Provisional  Government,  accord- 
ingly, immediately  repaired  to  the  Hotel  de 
Ville,  followed  by  a  tumultuous  crowd  which 
no  man  could  number.  The  leaders  of  the  two 
parties  soon  met  upon  the  stairs  of  the  Hotel 
de  Ville,  and  a  violent  altercation  ensued,  which 
came  near  to  blows.  The  Place  de  Greve,  in 
front  of  the  hotel,  was  like  a  storm-tossed  ocean 
of  agitated  men,  "  a  living  sea,  madly  heaving 
and  tossing  about  beneath  the  tempest  of  rev- 
olution." 

Both  parties  were  terrified  by  the  menacing 
aspect  of  affairs.  A  compromise  was  hurried- 
ly agreed  to  by  adding  to  the  six  chosen  at  the 
Chamber  of  Deputies  six  more,  chosen  from 
the  party  at  the  Hotel  de  Ville.  Lamartine, 
from  the  head  of  the  stairs,  read  off  the  list-  to 
the  masses  surging  below. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Duchess  of  Orleans, 
having  escaped  from  the  Chamber  of  Deputies, 
and  surrounded  by  friends  who  were  ready  to 
sacrifice  their  own  lives  in  her  defense,  was  with 
difficulty  rescued  from  the  crowd.  Promi- 
nent among  her  protectors  was  M.  de  Morny. 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  403 


A  surging  crowd. 


As  the  duchess  was  veiled,  her  little  party  was 
soon  lost  in  the  heaving  masses,  and  unrec- 
ognized. The  terrors  of  the  hour  caused  fu- 
gitives to  be  struggling  wildly  through  the 
throng  in  all  directions.  The  pressure  was  so 
great  and  so  resistless  that  the  duchess  was 
torn  from  the  side  of  her  brother,  the  Duke  de 
Nemours,  and  from  both  of  her  children.  A 
moment  after  the  separation,  as  the  mother, 
frantic  with  terror,  was  groping  around  in 
search  cf  ter  sons,  a  brutal  wretch  of  gigantic 
stature  recognized  the  Count  de  Paris,  and,  seiz- 
ing him  by  the  throat,  endeavored  to  strangle 
him.  One  of  the  National  Guard  who  chanced 
to  be  near  rescued  the  child,  and  succeeded  in 
placing  him  in  the  hands  of  his  mother.  But 
the  younger  child,  the  Duke  de  Chartres,  could 
nowhere  be  found.  In  vain  the  distracted 
mother  called  aloud  for  her  child.  The  close- 
packed  throng  swayed  to  and  fro,  and  her 
feeble  voice  was  unheard  in  the  deafening 
clamor.  She  was  swept  along  by  the  flow  of 
a  torrent  which  it  was  impossible  to  resist. 
With  exceeding  difficulty  her  friends  suc- 
ceeded in  forcing  her  into  a  house.  She  ran 
to  the  window  of  one  of  the  chambers  to  look 
down  upon  the  scene  of  tumult  for  her  lost 


404  Louis  PHILIPPE.  [1848. 


Awful  uceneB  In  Paris. 


child.  Soon,  to  her  inexpressible  joy,  she  saw 
him  in  the  arms  of  a  friend.  The  poor  child 
was  faint,  and  almost  lifeless.  He  had  been 
thrown  down  and  trampled  under  the  feet  of 
the  crowd.  The  day  was  now  far  spent.  As 
soon  as  it  was  dark,  the  royal  party,  all  in  dis- 
guise, engaged  a  hack,  and,  passing  through 
the  Champs  Elyse'es,  escaped  from  the  city. 
After  a  short  journey  of  many  perils  and  great 
mental  suffering,  they  were  reunited  with  the 
exiled  king  and  court  at  Claremout. 

The  night  succeeding  these  scenes  in  Paris 
was  appalling  beyond  imagination.  There  was 
no  recognized  law  in  the  metropolis.  A  pop- 
ulation of  a  million  and  a  half  of  people  was  in 
the  streets.  The  timid  and  the  virtuous  were 
terror-stricken.  The  drunken,  the  degraded, 
the  ferocious  held  the  city  at  their  mercy. 
Radical  as  was  the  party  which  had  assembled 
at  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  there  was  another  party, 
composed  of  the  dregs  of  the  Parisian  populace, 
more  radical  still.  This  party  was  ripe  for 
plunder  and  for  unlimited  license  in  every  out- 
rage. About  midnight,  in  a  desperately  armed 
and  howling  band,  they  made  an  attack  upon 
the  Provisional  Government  at  the  H6tel  de 
Ville;  after  a  severe  struggle,  the  assailants 


1848.]  THE  THRONE  DEMOLISHED.  406 


Death  of  Louis  Philippe. 


were  repelled.  The  next  morning  the  Mvn,- 
iteur  announced  to  the  citizens  of  Paris,  and 
the  telegraph  announced  to  Europe,  that  the 
throne  of  Louis  Philippe  had  crumbled,  and 
that  a  Republic  was  established  in  France. 

We  must  not  forget,  in  our  stern  condemna- 
tion of  the  brutality,  the  ignorance,  the  ferocity 
of  the  mob,  that  it  was  composed  of  men — hus- 
bands, brothers,  fathers — man^r  of  whom  had 
been  defrauded  of  their  rights  and  maddened 
by  oppression.  If  governments  will  sow  the 
wind  by  trampling  upon  the  rights  of  the  peo- 
ple, they  must  expect  to  reap  the  whirlwind 
when  their  exasperated  victims  rise  in  the 
blindness  of  their  rage. 

Louis  Philippe  did  not  long  survive  his  fall. 
He  died  at  Claremont,  in  England,  on  the  26th 
of  August,  1850.  The  reader,  who  may  be  in- 
terested to  inform  himself  of  the  changes  in 
France  which  followed  this  Revolution,  will 
find  them  minutely  detailed  in  the  "Life  of 
Napoleon  III." 


THE  END. 


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